Angels and Office Workers
by Xinthos
Summary: As a socially inept pariah and the unluckiest half-demon in Hell, Setsuna can't help but feel her mission to befriend Konoka Konoe is doomed to fail. Everyone has their run-in with fortune sooner or later, however, and she soon finds that her assignment may be going a little /too/ well... Cosmic warfare, magic powers, and accidental romance included. [KonoSetsu]. [AU].
1. Not Another Dan Brown Movie

**A/N**: Story rating will change with content! Lemon likely (but not guaranteed) in future chapters. This is an AU, and details will be introduced as the story progresses. Thanks for reading everyone, and please leave some feedback on your way out! :)

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The atmosphere in Hell is about as inviting as you'd think it'd be: not very. The dry air and the exhaustive heat makes it torturous to even stand outside for long periods of time, and even though Setsuna has had her entire life to get used to it, today seems particularly bad. Evangeline is lecturing her about something important, and she digs her nails into her palms to keep her mind from wandering.

It does anyway though, much to both of their irritation, and Setsuna is glad that Evangeline is being relatively patient with her today. Normally she would've been called an idiot ten times by now, and that's only assuming the vampire even thought her questions were worthy of a response at all.

"So, um, I understand what I'm supposed to be doing, but why is this person's soul is so important?"

Evangeline smacks her forehead and sighs.

"I guess it makes sense that you wouldn't know your own history given who and what you are, but how can you be ignorant to the history of the _entire world_?"

Setsuna bows her head and says nothing. How she can be expected to know anything when no one but Evangeline will come close to her without violent intentions doesn't cross her mind. That she's been bound by chains or in isolated rooms for the majority of her life doesn't seem a good enough excuse either; instead the shame of her ignorance comes quick and easy because shame is one of few things she understands whole-heartedly.

"It's not really important for you to know that now," Evangeline brushes it off, noting the other girl's forlorn demeanor. "I'll tell you some other time."

The vampire looks away from the now earnest expression on the other girl's face. To be so grateful just to be spoken to is… disturbing.

"So what do I need to know for right now?"

"Weren't you paying attention?" Evangeline snaps, and Setsuna flinches at the sharp tone.

"I was!" She exclaims, and parrots her objectives. "I need to go to Heaven and pretend to be an angel so that they send me to Earth, then I kill some girl and bring her soul here."

"And _why_ do you have to go through Heaven?" Evangeline asks, testing Setsuna's memory.

"Because – because the only way to get to Earth is through Heaven," the chained half-demon replies after a moment of thought, looking eagerly at Evangeline for approval.

"I guess that's close enough," the vampire sighs. "If you want details…" Evangeline clears her throat and begins to pace before going through the lecture. "There are two conditions that need to be met in order for this mission to be successful. One, you have to be near the girl's body when she dies. And two, your souls must be intertwined in one way or another. "

Setsuna had been listening attentively thus far, but one thing in particular doesn't make sense to her.

"What do you mean by intertwined?"

"I mean… well…" Evangeline trails off.

How the hell do you explain what companionship is to someone who's never had a real companion?

"Don't worry about it; it'll come with being her Guardian. Just keep me updated and I'll let you know when you're there."

"I will."

Setsuna wonders at the unfamiliar feeling of excitement. But how could she not be excited? Someone is putting their faith in her, and for the first time in her life, she's going to have something important to do. Something only _she_ can do.

She doesn't think she'll ever be able to say she's thankful for her white wings, but right now is as close as Setsuna has ever gotten. Their color, a symbol of the angels that functionally imprisoned them here, is the cause of her torment. Since the day of her birth she'd been held up as an example of what should be hated by demons, and her mixed lineage only exacerbated that hatred. Most of her life is spent confined in one way or another, being forced to fight impossible battles for entertainment (nobody wanted to see her win), or being blatantly paraded around, tortured, and publicly executed. All to make an example out of her.

All because of her wings.

Ironically, they're now her ticket out of this place. White wings are the defining magical trait of angels, and although hers are actually inherited from her demonic side and colored that way out of lack of pigment, they're similar looking enough to pass as angelic. Which means out of all the demon inhabitants, she's the only one who can do this.

"Don't get too excited now," Evangeline can't help but notice Setsuna's relatively happy expression, "Earth can be a pretty painful place too."

"What pain could possibly be greater than having my eyes torched, or all the hair and feathers on my body plucked one at a time?"

"The daily grind, my dear. It feels a lot like that second thing you just mentioned. Except maybe worse, for the fact that humans will eventually realize they wasted their lives and don't have any time left to spend all the money they spent the last fifty years accumulating."

"…Have you ever had your eyes torched?"

Realizing this conversation has become rather irrelevant, Evangeline kicks her feet up and stops in midair, floating just above the ground. It almost looks like she's sunbathing, though Setsuna wouldn't know what that is yet.

Normally Evangeline wouldn't humor this kind of needless and relaxed conversation, but she's feeling charitable today.

"No, can't say I have. When I was on Earth they burned me at the stake though. That was pretty bad."

"Sorry to hear that."

"It happens."

The talking pauses. Setsuna realizes that the vampire is being kind to her today, and she's infinitely glad for it. The two of them have a lot in common, being cursed creatures and spending the entirety of their lives suffering the consequences of other people's mistakes. She figures that's why Evangeline had been assigned to watch over her in the first place.

Well, that, and she's also the only one willing to come within ten feet of Setsuna without beating her.

So Setsuna hangs gracelessly from her chains, accepting her miserable fate as she had since she was born down there in the pits of Hell, and passively watches her overseer kick her legs and pretend to backstroke through the hot, hazy air. But since she's being nice today, Setsuna decides to take the risk and ask something she's wondered since they'd first met.

"Evangeline?"

The blonde hums in response and swims behind one of Setsuna's huge white wings, plucking a feather carelessly and placing it daintily across her eyes. When the winged girl doesn't react, Evangeline finally graces her with a response.

"What is it?"

"What's it like to be human?"

"It's shit."

"Oh."

There's a twinge of disappointment in her voice that Evangeline can't help but hear.

"It's shit," she says again, "but it's nothing like being here."

She spares the chained girl a glance, notes the curious expression, and kindly decides to throw the albino outcast a bone.

"Earth is full of corruption and death just like this place, and many people die and get killed and kill. But," she continues, finger-combing her long blond hair and staring past Setsuna at some distant memory, "there are arguably some things worth staying on that planet for."

"Like what?"

Evangeline stops floating and spins on her heel, suddenly irritated, and begins to pace.

"Look," she growls, "What I'm trying to say is, even though I describe humanity as spoiled and self-destructive, yadda yadda, it's not exactly like that all the time."

"It's not?"

Evangeline looks quickly away from that hopeful expression. Despite her six hundred years and all the horrible things she had to endure during them, she can't say there weren't points in her life when she was happy. This girl, on the other hand, had been born down here and immediately ostracized because of her colors.

She can understand why Setsuna might hope for something even slightly less agonizing than this. Evangeline is the only person Setsuna has ever exchanged words with that didn't end in a beating. She supposes that makes them friends. _Now _that_ is a sad thought._

"What's it like then?"

Evangeline realizes she's been staring off for a few minutes now.

"Basically, even though life sucks, and drains you, and sometimes destroys you utterly, humans trudge on and continue to live. As to why, well…" She trails off, lost in nostalgia, and once again feels the irritating swell of pity for this half-demon in front of her.

"Maybe you'll find out," Evangeline finally says, and the sympathetic part of her hopes that'll be the case, "But there's no easy answer to that question, if there's one at all."

"Do you think the gatekeeper would know?" Setsuna asks curiously, not expecting the response that would follow.

"HA! That idiot wouldn't know blue if the sky fell on his head, I really doubt-" Evangeline stops suddenly, noticing the bewildered expression on Setsuna's face. She clears her throat and continues casually, "You could always ask while you're visiting Heaven, assuming you aren't immediately found out and killed. In fact, I would love to know his answer, and I haven't seen him in, oh, a while now. Ask him for me, will you?"

"I will," Setsuna answers. Evangeline is her only companion, even if they rarely see each other, and doing this small favor is the least she can offer in return for the smaller girl's company. Evangeline notices the determination on her face, as if she'd just asked the winged demon to sacrifice her soul or something equally as serious, and sighs. For _her_ to be this child's only friend is a sad state of affairs indeed.

"And Setsuna? One more thing," The vampire says, unlocking the shackles around Setsuna's wrists. She falls from her bindings gracelessly, hitting the floor with a dull thud and waiting patiently for her circulation to normalize. Being strung up like that leaves her arms feeling like dead weight after a while.

"The higher-ups have agreed to send you some company."

"You mean I'm getting help?" Setsuna asks, understandably surprised.

"Not quite. More like they're sending her in to kill you in case you fail."

"Ah, I see."

Finally regaining the feeling in her arms she stands and walks quickly to catch up to Evangeline. The vampire leads her away from the depths of Animum Despondeo, the demon city lovingly named by its creator.

When they're far enough away that Setsuna can no longer see the skyline of the city, Evangeline stops.

"Take this," she holds her hand out and Setsuna gingerly takes the black compact and leather bracelet from her hands. There are three red stones embedded in the cords of the bracelet, and she's never seen anything like them before.

"What is this?"

"The bracelet is imbued with some of my strongest magic. Before you die you can break one of those gems between your teeth and gain control of your free-falling soul, allowing you to travel between worlds without having to find a portal."

"But there are only three."

"Exactly. So _don't_. _Die_," Evangeline stresses, making sure that Setsuna understands.

She doesn't, of course, because spending more than two days without being killed hasn't happened for her in a long time.

"And this?" She holds up the compact.

"We can use it to talk to each other. Just open it up and you should be able to see me, assuming I'm in the mood. Just don't use it in public."

"Why?"

"Because it'll look like you're talking to yourself."

"Is that strange?"

"Oh for the love of…"

Evangeline bites her tongue to keep from spewing curses.

"Just forget it, you'll figure it out eventually."

"Okay," Setsuna says, oblivious to pretty much everything that'd just happened. She doesn't understand why that would be weird, but she's excited to get to Earth and find out. Evangeline notices and speaks up again.

"I have one more warning for you."

The girl immediately becomes serious again.

"What is it?"

"You're not going to understand this yet, but at some point you may be tempted to abandon your mission."

"Why would I – "

"Just trust me," Evangeline looks her in the eye, making sure the other girl understands the seriousness of what she's saying, "But don't forget about us. If you do this you'll save our entire race. You'll be a hero, Setsuna, and when we escape to Earth I'll make sure everyone knows it. You'll never be treated the way you are now ever again."

_A hero…_

Evangeline is right in that Setsuna doesn't understand the threat of forgetting her goals; no one gains more from the success of this mission than she does. Still, the vampire has always been wise and helpful, so she commits the advice to memory.

"Alright, here we go," Evangeline's voice knocks her out of her thoughts, "And Setsuna?"

"Yes?"

"Be careful on Earth. Some things really do hurt more than getting your eyes torched."

_I'll have to take your word for it_, Setsuna thinks, biting down on one of the bracelet's gems just before Evangeline steps forward and skillfully snaps her neck.

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Reviews are much appreciated!

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	2. The Internet is For

**A/N: **DAMNIT! a;lkdjsf;kjdsf. I just realized a couple of my line breaks disappeared. Re-uploading to fix that -_-

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**XXX**

What is it?

The humming of the computers, damnit, and the stupid fluorescent lights casting a vomit-inducing greenish hue over everything in this tiny little jail called "cubicle." And you know what else? The idiocy of this stupid job, and this oppressively dull atmosphere, and the poor souls damned to stare at flickering outdated computer screens until their lives have wasted away and they need eye prescriptions in the double digits. In short, _life_ is giving Setsuna a headache.

She's been doing these exact same tasks and thinking those same thoughts for the past three weeks. She may as well sleep here – all she does is go home and pretend to sleep anyway, so staying at work would at least spare her the horrible mid-morning commute. And _clearly_, she thinks, this job is as useless as it makes her feel. The entirety of her employment she's done nothing but type "I fucking hate this" for sixty full pages – no copy/paste, that would be cheating – and play online roleplaying games. Nobody, even her bosses, has noticed yet. In the meantime she navigates her ridiculously busty character in the World of Witchcraft and wishes that actually being a demon is as fun as pretending to be one online.

Moral of the story? Demons, even half-demons, should not hold office jobs.

"You need to redistribute your talent points and switch to a single-handed weapon, or else your attack speed will be too slow."

Mana doesn't even need to look up from her own screen to tell her any of that. Setsuna silently curses her silly façade of a life for the two-hundred and twelfth time that day, as she had been doing since Evangeline had come to warn her over a month ago that she was destined for great pain.

After her character is killed by ogres for the sixth time in the past hour, Setsuna decides now is a good time for a break. She leans back in her chair and sticks her hand in her pocket, running her finger along the edge of the card hidden there. Looking down she can just barely see the beginnings of her portrait.

Setsuna hadn't even realized the picture on the card was her own until she'd begun training on Earth. With Mana.

After stepping through the portal she found herself standing in a dark room, face to face with the girl that would be in charge of keeping her in line. She was intimidating to say the least, with two guns tucked into her belt, but hardly looked the part of your average demon. With no further insight than that, and spared the pleasure of an introduction, she was lead to a chair and made to sit down, and what followed was excruciating pain comparable to what she'd felt on her worst days in Hell.

Setsuna had no clue what was going on – one minute she was being shoved into a seat with Mana's hand resting on the top of her head, and the next she was gritting her teeth against a headache that could only be described as _agonizing_.

Pure, raw information that she couldn't fully comprehend was being shoved forcefully into her mind – cars, air conditioning, handshakes, palm trees, _what the fuck is ice cream_? For a full two hours Setsuna could feel her brain scrambling in an attempt to understand these new things. She thought it might be like trying to alphabetize an encyclopedia that's been put through a paper shredder.

It took a full twenty-four hours after she'd been left slack-jawed and wide-eyed on the floor of that room to understand her own analogy, but at that point she knew her brain was done sorting. She sat up, and Mana was there.

"I assume Guardian training went alright?"

"I'm here, aren't I?"

"I see you've at least learned sarcasm."

Setsuna was pretty sure she'd already been capable of that, but Mana didn't seem like the kind of person that appreciated back-talk, and she isn't really the type to dish it out anyway. Now though, three weeks later and more-or-less situated on Earth, she feels her resolve cracking from the constant off-hand criticisms.

Which brings us full-circle, back to Setsuna the fake guardian angel half-demon from Hell being picked on by her demonic watch dog about an online role-playing game.

Sometimes it's easier not to acknowledge the strangeness of things.

"I like my character's talent build."

"It's inefficient, just like your handling of this mission."

"I'm not sure why you care so much."

More of the resolve cracking.

"The faster you grab this girl's soul, the faster I get paid."

Part of her wants to argue, but Setsuna knows she's being slow about the whole process. Even Asuna had contacted her a week ago to check on her progress and was dumbfounded that she hadn't even spoken to her charge yet.

That was all easier said than done, in Setsuna's opinion. Just because she'd had the knowledge of what social interactions _should_ look like forcibly woven into the fabric of her psyche doesn't mean she's capable of performing them.

"Finished all your work I see."

Startled out of her self-defeating thoughts, Setsuna swivels in her chair to get an eyeful of the stubbly chin-strap of her office manager.

"Mr. Takahata," she offers in greeting, not bothering to minimize the incriminating window open on her computer.

"I know this job isn't the most stimulating, but at least pretending to work will prevent me from having to turn you over to the lady in charge."

Dread promptly announces itself by gouging holes in Setsuna's stomach.

"I suppose that means I'm being turned in."

"Yes," Takahata agrees amiably, the smallest of amused smiles on his face. "I suppose it does. I'll arrange a meeting for you tomorrow morning, first thing when you come in. Better to get it over with."

Procrastinating has never sounded better, in Setsuna's opinion.

He's halfway down the hall when he turns around again.

"And Ms. Sakurazaki? You'd do more damage if you redistributed your talent points. Since your using a double-handed weapon, a damage-dealing specialization might be better."

And with that he disappears around the doorway to the office kitchen, leaving Setsuna with the cheerful thought of _I fucking hate this life_.

**XXX**

Setsuna is beginning to suspect Earth is spoiling her.

Even though her time on the blue planet has hardly been enjoyable up to this point, she finds she has to constantly remind herself that where she comes from is _so much worse_. There's no comparison between monotony and tediousness versus mind-numbing physical pain and loneliness.

But somehow she still manages to find mediocre things to complain about. It's silly and spoiled, really, to even _notice_ that Ms. Konoe's office chairs are so much more comfortable than hers. And yet as her butt sinks into the pillowy goodness of a plush armchair, she can't help that vague feeling of indignation when she thinks about the back-breaking plastic-y thing on wheels she has to go back to.

Her (perhaps too serious) examination of furniture is interrupted by heels clacking on the hardwood floor.

Setsuna hardly has time to notice the styled brown hair and the frustrated expression and the opal necklace and the gold bracelet and the fitted dress that's more appropriate for a date than a professional environment according to the limited fashion sense that was installed in her brain via Mana –

Alright, so she notices quite a bit before her thought train comes screeching to a halt once again by the sound of heels, this time being kicked off and bounced against the wall. But only because it's hard _not_ to notice how absolutely loaded this woman must be, even to Setsuna.

"Can you believe this?"

The woman throws herself on her chair in a display of impressive recklessness. She lands sideways so her head is resting against one arm and her legs are dangling over the other, pink-heart-covered-socked-feet swinging in the air.

"Um," is Setsuna's sympathetic response.

"He thinks he can just give me away like I'm a prize – not even! He's basically _selling me_ to the highest bidder just to make sure his company doesn't collapse when he retires. As if I couldn't run it myself, like I need some – some – some stupid _guy_ to just come in and rescue me like I'm a dainty princess. I don't understand why he doesn't just train _me_ to take over instead of trying to find someone who'll probably come in and mess it all up for his own personal gain anyway."

"I'm sorry?" More sympathy. Kind of.

"You're right," the woman Setsuna assumes to be Ms. Konoe does a spin in her swivel chair, "I don't even really want to run this business. It's so boring – for me, anyway. I'd rather be out doing something cool, but, well, I don't usually get so mad. It's just some of these guys… I mean who wants to spend their life with a man who only marries you for your dad?"

"Not you, certainly."

Ms. Konoe, or at least Setsuna hopes it is or she's just wasted a lot of time, pulls her feet up on her chair so she can hug her knees.

"Exactly. Marriage should be about love, and passion, and fate, right?"

"I've heard that many people who get married for financial reasons end up living happily."

"You really think so?"

Setsuna doesn't really know, but she nods anyway.

"Maybe you're right and I'm just being too romantic about it. Are you married, Miss, um…?"

It's at this point the brunette realizes she'd just come storming into her office to rant at a complete stranger.

"Setsuna Sakurazaki, from human resources. And no, I'm not."

"I guess your father isn't trying to marry you off either, huh?" Ms. Konoe sighs dejectedly.

"My parents are dead."

Ah, perhaps the first truth she's spoken to a human since she'd arrived. Judging from Ms. Konoe's expression, Setsuna guesses she probably should have lied.

"I'm so sorry for your loss," Ms. Konoe mumbles. She reaches her hand behind her head embarrassedly, but her voice is sincere. "That must have been very hard for you."

"Not really," Setsuna shrugs, not thinking much of her boss's reaction. Another day, another social faux pas.

"You seem very down to Earth, Ms. Sakurazaki. I wish I could be a bit more like you."

More like tactless and ignorant of social nuances than down to Earth, Setsuna knows. As if to back up this thought, a long, awkward silence stretches between the two. It consists of Setsuna making too much eye contact and not offering a response, and Ms. Konoe still being rather embarrassed and confused by the whole exchange.

And then she realizes an employee probably isn't sitting in her office for no reason.

"So, uh, was there something you needed help with?"

"I got caught playing computer games by Mr. Takamichi. He sent me here."

"You make it sound like school detention or something."

"You're not going to hit me with a ruler, are you?"

There's a short silence before Ms. Konoe's laughter drowns it out.

"You have such an intense expression," she says between giggles. "For a second I thought you were being serious."

Well, she had been, since Setsuna's idea of detention comes from Mana's outdated memories of a highly religious private school.

"I think that's the first time I've laughed all day," Ms. Konoe admits once she regains her composure.

"Glad to see you're feeling better, Ms. Konoe. Is there anything you might need me for, or should I get back to work?"

"No, nothing I can think of yet. Maybe I'll call you back in here when I need a level head again though," she smiles, getting up to open the door for her employee.

Just as Setsuna's walking through the doorframe there's a hand on her wrist.

"Ah, I did think of something! Call me Konoka, will you?"

"I will," Setsuna says, closing the door behind her.

**XXX**

Mana is looking at her like she's a stray dog, but Setsuna is used to that.

Plus, she really looks the part right now. Her outfit is soaked and sticks to her skin, and despite her best attempts, she somehow managed to track mud all over their apartment's carpet.

"Do you know what a door mat is for?" Mana asks, pointedly and disdainfully looking at the shoe-prints on the floor.

"Sorry," Setsuna offers, finally pulling her shoes off and setting them beside the door. She sits on the armchair in front of the TV and turns it on. Far from being a brain-killing activity, Setsuna actually considers TV to be educational – she learns a lot about humans from these shows, at least.

Mana watches from the kitchen, waiting for her water to boil, and sighs. There's going to be a big, wet Setsuna-imprint on that chair now.

And she can't even blame her for it, really. The girl isn't doing it because she's inconsiderate. Rather, it's because she legitimately doesn't understand why someone would care if their seat was wet, or if their lights were left on, or if their roommate knocks on their door at four in the morning to ask what the phrase _curb stomp_ means because she heard it on the TV.

Mana hadn't been too happy about that one.

It's too bad her information transfer couldn't be more specific. As it stands, however, the most she could do was give the other girl's brain some images and their corresponding pictures, like a child's book, so Setsuna can recognize things and their basic function. But transferring _context_ for those words, while it would prevent many strange social interactions for Setsuna, would require Mana to transfer the context from her own memories. And she's not about to do that.

The slang and sex-related words, on the other hand, are an entirely different matter, and more annoying in some ways.

Mana hadn't thought it necessary for Setsuna to know phrases like _friend zone_ and _getting plastered_ at the time. She regrets that frequently now, and if Setsuna didn't cower away whenever Mana mentioned her desire to just implant these things in the girl's mind, she would've done it by now.

The water boils and she dumps her instant noodles and soup packet in the pot – cooking isn't her strong suit – and when she turns back around Setsuna is staring out the window.

"Mana?"

"Hmm?"

"Why doesn't the sky at home do this?"

"Wasn't this explained to you?"

Setsuna shrugs.

"Evangeline said that our world is dying, but is that why? Because it doesn't rain?"

Mana hums in affirmation and dumps her instant soup into a bowl. She joins Setsuna in the living room, resting her meal on the arm of their couch.

"Most people think so. You probably weren't outside during those times, but it does rain. Just not very often. And in order for resources to be sustained, the planet needs water. No water, no resources. It'll be completely useless soon."

"Ah."

Setsuna touches her wet clothes thoughtfully and continues to watch the downpour outside. Mana takes a bite of her food before speaking.

"How did your meeting with that woman go today?"

"Um, good, I think."

That doesn't mean much coming from Setsuna.

"She didn't scold you?"

"No. She was complaining about men, and her father forcing her to get married, or something along those lines. Then she said she'd call me if she needed advice again."

Mana puts down her chopsticks, the only indication of her surprise.

"_You_ gave her advice?"

"Not really, no, but she seems to think I did."

_That's good news for her, _Mana thinks, relieved on Konoka's behalf.

"Well, at least you'll have a reason to talk to her from now on. Or you could just keep getting in trouble at work."

Setsuna nods distractedly and fiddles with the hem of her still damp shirt.

"I was thinking…" She finally turns away from the window to face Mana, "If Heaven is so much better than Earth, why don't the angels just kill everyone and take their souls there instead?"

"Because," Mana pauses, taking a second to think. "…I don't know actually. Maybe because humans are happy here. But the angels must have their reasons."

'…_We're all connected in one way or another, so the destruction of one life could mean the destruction of many…'_

Asuna's words ring clear in Setsuna's mind, but she doesn't mention it. It's not much of an explanation anyway, so she opts for turning back to the TV.

They sit in silence through the commercial break and halfway through an episode of Seinfeld. Mana isn't a big fan of television, and especially not since Setsuna came around. Shows like the sitcom on right now are particularly dangerous.

Setsuna narrows her eyes at the TV and opens her mouth, and Mana steadies herself for what she knows is coming.

"I don't understand. What are they betting on?"

Mana stares stone-faced at the screen and tries to decide if it's better to lie or tell the truth. But, well, part of her duty as Setsuna's babysitter is to help her get accustomed to the life of a human so she can properly act the part. _This is part of what I'm getting paid for, I suppose._

"They're betting on who can go the longest without masturbating," she finally says.

"Oh."

Setsuna lets that information cycle through her mind for a minute, and then:

"What does _masturbating_ mean?"

_This is not worth the money_.

Mana sets her empty bowl down on the coffee table and disappears into her bedroom. She reemerges balancing an open laptop.

"Here," she puts it on Setsuna's lap. "Just look it up."

Setsuna looks at the laptop and then at Mana, who has retreated back to the couch, then back at the laptop again. Finally she puts her fingers to the keyboard and types the word into Google.

The gunman relishes the silence, happy at having found a less ridiculous solution than giving her naïve roommate the "bird and the bees" talk.

Or so she thought.

"Is that what this girl's doing?"

Before thinking about it Mana turns to Setsuna, only to find the laptop's screen has been turned to face her. She gets a good eyeful of some woman lying on a desk and spreading her legs before her reflexes can kick in and turn her head away.

"Damnit, Setsuna," Mana curses, trying to unsee the fragment of video. Setsuna looks at her quizzically, and Mana can only sigh and agree, "Yes, that's what she's doing."

"Why do people do that?"

"Why don't you try it and find out?" Mana growls, exasperated by this whole situation.

She hadn't been expecting Setsuna to listen to her quite so immediately, although she probably should have, and before she can say a word the girl is stripping in the middle of their living room.

"Not _here_ you idiot!"

Setsuna pauses, hands on the clasp of her bra, and waits for instruction.

"Your _room_. Go. To. Your. _Room_."

"Oh," Setsuna nods, "Okay."

Mana lets herself sink down in her seat a little bit when she hears Setsuna's bedroom door close.

_How she hasn't been hit by a car or killed yet is beyond me…_

She glances at the spot where Setsuna had been sitting and realizes her laptop is gone. As in, Setsuna took it to her room. Probably to use as an instructional tool. For_ masturbation._

…_Damnit_.

**XXX**

Later that weekend Setsuna turns the television on only to be greeted by static.

"What happened to the TV?" She asks Mana, who is sitting on the couch reading.

"I cancelled our cable."

"Oh," Setsuna pauses, "…Why?"

Mana's brain assaults her with the pornographic image her roommate had flashed her with two days ago.

"It was expensive," she says, and Setsuna nods and opens up Mana's laptop, which she had kindly gifted her after the other night. She switches off the TV and opens up her MMORPG.

Mana smiles behind her book.

…_It's definitely better to lie._

**XXX**

Like most people who get scolded, Setsuna didn't quit playing her game at work. She just got better at hiding it.

On Monday she changed her desktop to a dark background and now plays in windowed mode. The stripe of black at the top of the screen works like a mirror, allowing her to see if someone is coming up behind her, and although it affects her gameplay a little to be glancing up all the time she decides it's worth the reduction in DPS.

Because even though Mana told her it would be a good opportunity for her and Konoka to talk again, and even though it's her mission to do just that, the idea makes her nervous. Setsuna still doesn't understand what's expected of her by Evangeline and Mana – or by Konoka for that matter.

Is it significant that Konoka had been complaining to Setsuna, and that she asked to be called by her first name? That's what friends do on TV, at least... But does one meeting qualify as "friendship?" And more than that, is that even enough for their souls to be linked? Setsuna figures it must be because she doesn't know what else _would_ be, if not that.

But Setsuna figures she doesn't know much of anything at all, so she decides it's best to sequester herself in her cubicle and quietly play World of Witchcraft.

Unfortunately for her, that plan doesn't turn out like she wanted it too.

On Tuesday she hears the little _ping_ e-mail notification from her computer. She types a quick "brb" to the people she'd been doing a dungeon with – _internet interactions are so much easier than real life _– and minimizes the window.

**Konoka Konoe  
SUB: [no subject]**

**Hey, you said you were sent to my office because of a game right? What was its name?**

Setsuna rereads the e-mail again, minimizes the window, and then reopens it. The message is, of course, the same.

_Why would she ask that? Does she want the name so she can block people from playing at work on the office computers?_

But, well, Konoka's her boss. What else can she do but answer?

**me, Konoka Konoe  
RE: [no subject]**

**It's called World of Witchcraft.**

Setsuna hits the send button and frowns at her computer. This MMO is the only thing making work tolerable.

She reopens her game, typing a quick "I'm back," and resigns herself to whatever happens.

On Thursday, however, her game is still up and running. She hears the e-mail _ping_ again and minimizes the window, only to find another message from Konoka.

**Konoka Konoe  
SUB: The Wastelands quest**

Setsuna rubs her eyes and reads the subject line again.

_The Wastelands is a zone in WoW, isn't it…?_

She clicks on the e-mail.

**Where the hell is Markrik's wife?**

…

She stares at the line of text and guesses she should be happy her internet access isn't going to be restricted, but is her boss really playing an MMO at work? She figures she should answer regardless and types a quick reply before reopening her game.

Another _ping_ forces her to minimize it again though, and she sighs frustratedly when her computer lags out and she has to reset it. When the OS finally boots she checks the message.

**me, Konoka Konoe  
RE:RE: The Wastelands quest**

**OHHHH. Thanks!**

Setsuna struggles for a moment, trying to decide if she should reply, and ultimately decides not to. This is already weird enough as it is, she figures.

Except pretty soon it gets even weirder.

A week passes, and just as she's about to forget the whole thing ever happened, she scrolls through her e-mails one Saturday morning to find another message.

**Konoka Konoe  
SUB: WORK EMERGENCY**

"Is that really for you?"

Setsuna jumps at the sound of Mana's voice from behind her. Normally she wouldn't be caught so off guard, but the girl walks like a freakin' cat.

"It's addressed to me, so I guess so."

She clicks open the e-mail, leaning to the side a bit to let Mana get an easier look.

**Good morning Ms. Sakurazaki,**

**There's been an issue involving your department. Because of the problem's scale, it has become necessary that we address it immediately. At your earliest convenience, but no later than 2:00pm, please meet me at the address specified below. Business dress will not be required, and I apologize for any inconvenience this may cause you.**

**Sincerely,**

**Konoka Konoe**

Mana's eyes skim over the e-mail and land on the address listed at the bottom. She raises an eyebrow at the street name.

"That's an upper class neighborhood. The address is probably for her house."

"Do you know where it is?" Setsuna asks, already grabbing her jacket from the closet and searching for a missing shoe.

"It's outside of the city. You'll have to get on the metro and take a bus, and even then you'll have to walk at least a mile."

_Jeez, I wonder why she lives so far from everything_.

Setsuna shoves her laptop and power cord into a backpack and, holding her keys in her mouth, attempts to put her hair up.

"…Are you really going to go like that?"

"Go like what?" She mumbles, mouth full of keys.

"In sweatpants and sneakers, carrying a backpack, and with your ponytail completely sideways."

"Meh," is Setsuna's undignified answer, "Why does it matter?"

It's only when Mana smiles that Setsuna realizes she might actually need to be worried about it.

"You have a lot to learn."

She turns away, seemingly done with the conversation, and Setsuna locks the door behind her and embarks on her trek.

**XXX**

They're standing outside the mouth of a huge cave. Icicles hang from the top lip and snow blankets the ground where they're standing, and one can only guess it must be far below freezing.

Setsuna managed to light a fire, however, having had flint in her backpack. She sits down with Konoka across from her, enjoying some stamina-boosting grilled fish. A long sigh from Konoka reaches her ears despite the howling wind.

"I don't get it," she half-shouts over the noise. "It's _supposed_ to be right here."

"Do you think we could've missed it?"

"I don't see how. That cave is only, like, ten feet deep and this thing is supposed to be _massive_ –"

Setsuna stands suddenly, drawing her sword.

"Found it," she says, and Konoka follows her gaze to the large, drooling, hairy yeti standing behind her. She jumps back and Setsuna unfurls her wings, swooping in to strike the creature from above. She scores a direct hit, only to enrage the beast and get swatted down like an oversized bug.

"Shit," she stares at her broken arm guard, "These things are expensive to fix."

Still staring at her arms, she watches a barely noticeable aura engulf her. Feeling renewed from Konoka's spell, she goes at the yeti again, striking four times in succession before a quick shout from her magic-using partner warns her to get away.

She jumps back, beating her wings to stay in the air as she watches the ground explode in a glowing, fiery energy. The yeti attempts to claw after Setsuna and fails, its movements being slowed down by the charring of its feet, and it bleats its sheep-like cry as it falls to the ground.

They stare at the fallen creature as if expecting it to get up again. When it doesn't, they breathe a sigh of relief.

"That wasn't so bad," Konoka murmurs, approaching the yeti's body once the magic on the ground has waned. She reaches her hand in its mouth and pulls out one very large tooth – supposedly a magical item, according to the guy that'd asked them to retrieve it. Once she's successfully extracted it, she turns to Setsuna and notices her wounded arm. Konoka rubs her hands together, summoning her healing magic.

"Thanks," Setsuna says in advance, "I don't have any bandages left so –"

Konoka nearly jumps out of her skin when she sees Setsuna suddenly combust into a ball of white-hot flames, get stabbed by two gnomes, and then be mauled by a tiger.

**XXX**

"Oh what the _hell_," she can't help but exclaim, throwing her headset down on her computer desk and standing up in outrage, "Why are there so many high-level players that just spend all their time killing us?"

Setsuna stares passively at her character burning to death and shrugs.

"At least you got your tooth."

She's used to assholes in this game taking advantage of her relatively low-level character for some quick laughs. Konoka, being a bit newer than her, is understandably more frustrated.

"I'll walk my spirit back to our bodies and resurrect us, you can wait there," Konoka offers, returning her focus back to their game.

She puts her headphones back on and Setsuna leans back in her chair to wait. Glancing up over the top of her borrowed monitor she takes a moment to reflect on the strangeness of her afternoon. Today is the first day she's had on Earth that broke her pattern of work, sleep, work. Even the walk here was strange.

After finally reaching Konoka's neighborhood, she could kind of understand what Mana meant with her earlier remarks.

_Everyone _had been staring at her.

Despite the various people taking wide routes around her while exercising their tiny pets, it was still a pretty pleasant walk. Whereas the sidewalks around her apartment are usually uneven and end after about twenty feet, forcing her to cross the road every few minutes or risk being hit by a car, the paths here are long and smooth. Trees line the pavement and every front yard is filled with colorful flowers, and from her view on the street she could see tennis courts and pools behind the traditional-style mansions.

She'd passed several people on her way here. Most of them were older woman in their fifties power walking on the other side of the street, clad in Under Armor spandex and pink Nike shoes. They all quickly pretended to be busy changing the song on her iPhones until they'd passed Setsuna completely.

It's not like Setsuna's particularly intimidating, being so small, and only upon remembering Mana's words did she realize those paranoid people were all probably under the assumption that she's going to rob their houses. Konoka's maids and butlers hadn't been much better either, and she faces their scrutiny every time they walk in the room or she has to step outside it. She'd had to spend fifteen minutes just convincing them to let her inside the gate, and Konoka herself had to come to the front door and confirm who Setsuna is before she was allowed in the house.

After stepping inside though, she can almost understand why. Even the furniture in the foyer is probably worth more than both her kidneys. She'd been a bit worried about spending time in such a fancy place considering her obvious lack of etiquette, but to her surprise they'd went back to Konoka's work room and the girl had jumped right back in her computer chair. Turns out she'd needed help with a few quests. Which still left a couple of things unexplained.

"Konoka?"

"Hmm?"

"Did you actually need my help with work?"

"Nope," she replies easily, casting a resurrect spell in-game. Setsuna clicks the 'accept' button on her screen, and Konoka continues, "I had to say that though. My dad goes through my e-mails because he's afraid I'm going to talk about something that might hurt the company and hackers could get a hold of it. He got pissed about the messages I'd sent you earlier, so I kind of had to lie…"

She trails off, giving Setsuna an apologetic look.

"How do you talk to your friends then?" Setsuna asks, disregarding the apology since she doesn't know what to do with it.

Suddenly Konoka looks pretty uncomfortable, and Setsuna wonders if she said something strange. _People have friends, right? I think that's normal…_

"Well," the brunette starts, not making eye contact, "I don't really… have those."

"Ah."

_Guess not_.

Silence. Setsuna sits undisturbed through the awkwardness as only an oblivious person can, but finally Konoka can't stand the pressure.

"It's – it's not like there's something wrong. With me, I mean, or, you know, I don't think so anyway… It's just that most people at work don't want to be friends with their boss, you know? And when I was a kid I wasn't allowed to go anywhere outside my yard because my dad was super paranoid since my mom died in an accident…"

Setsuna lets the silence happen again, not knowing what to say to that, and Konoka can admit to herself that she might be getting a _little _panicked. _God, she probably thinks I'm a freak…_

(Little does she know.)

"Parents can be so frustrating," she finishes her thought and memories of her first conversation with Setsuna surface. She regrets saying it immediately.

"N – not that I'm not lucky, for having a dad, you know, I mean, I'm sure you know – _knew_. I'm sure you… knew, uh."

Pause.

"Okay, maybe there is something wrong with me," Konoka mumbles, letting herself sink forward in her chair until her face is in her hands.

Finally, something clicks for Setsuna.

"_Oh_, you mean you feel bad for mentioning my parents. I don't mind. I didn't know them, so I have no emotional ties to them at all."

_Whatever that means._

"I see," Konoka sighs in relief, "I'm still sorry though. You must think I'm an idiot or something."

A moment, and then another click.

"If you're embarrassed about not having friends, I really don't care about that."

Konoka raises an eyebrow at the blunt choice of words.

"You don't find it strange? I'm sure _you_ have lots of friends. You seem pretty normal to me."

Setsuna is pretty sure she's not normal.

As far as friends go… Well, there's Asuna, that's true, but their relationship is founded on lies. And Mana is _paid_ to be in her company. The only person that even comes close is Evangeline, but she only talks to Setsuna very rarely…

"I don't really know. What constitutes friendship?"

"I don't know either," Konoka admits, and then continues shyly, "But, if you want, you and I can be friends, and then we can figure it out. You know, and play games together and stuff…"

The girl lets her sentence hang and waits for a reply. Anyone but Setsuna would've been struck by how childish and silly that proposition sounded, but instead she just shrugs and says,

"Yeah, sure."

Despite Setsuna's nonchalance, Konoka is practically glowing.

"Really? Are you sure? This is going to be _awesome _ – there's a ton of stuff I've always wanted to do but I never really had anyone I could enjoy it with, but now I can just call you up, right? I mean if you're not busy, of course, and you don't _have _to hang out with me but –"

_I kind of do, though…_

"I'd like to hang out with you," Setsuna cuts her off there, "But I don't have a cellphone, so you'll have to e-mail me."

"You don't have a phone?"

"I don't have any friends, so I don't really have anyone to call."

Konoka guesses that makes sense.

"Okay, in that case I'll just –"

She's interrupted by a knock on the door.

"Come in."

An older maid steps into the room and nods politely at the guest before turning to Konoka.

"Miss Konoka, your father is here to discuss some business with you."

"Daddy is? Is he downstairs?"

"He's coming up now, actually."

A man's voice echoes from down the hallway, presumably Konoka's father, and it sends the girl into a flurry of action. She promptly closes the games open on both the computers and hurriedly shoves the extra monitor into a closet before going back for the computer and doing the same. She guides Setsuna back into her chair and reaches for the girl's laptop, lying closed on the corner of their desk, and opens it to face Setsuna. She's just sitting down in her own chair when her dad walks in, and she reverses the motion quickly to make it look like she's just standing up instead.

"Dad!"

"Konok_umpf –_ "

She jumps at him in a tackle-hug more appropriate for a kid, and he pats her on the back and says about as much.

"Aren't you getting a little old to be doing that?"

"You've been saying that for ten years dad. Hasn't stopped me yet."

He only notices Setsuna when his daughter releases her death grip, and the smile drops off his face immediately, his expression settling into something more business-like.

"Konoka, you didn't tell me you had a guest."

"Ah, oh yeah, I forgot," she smiles and gestures at Setsuna, who hasn't budged from her chair. "Dad, this is Setsuna Sakurazaki. She's an employee in human resources."

He sticks out his hand and Setsuna gets up to shake it.

"Nice to meet you, Mr. Konoe," she says and drops his hand to pile her things back in her backpack.

"Nice to meet you, Miss Sakurazaki," he answers just as politely, but his eyes follow her as she gathers her laptop and puts her belongings away.

A nudge from Konoka snaps him out of it.

"Don't be so rude, daddy, she's just here to help me with computer stuff."

He rubs the back of his head in embarrassment, and Setsuna can quite easily see the resemblance between the two.

"I'm sorry," he offers, smiling now, "I'm just very protective of my daughter. Please excuse me for being rude."

"That's alright. If you don't mind, I'll be going now. My roommate is expecting me back shortly."

"Of course," he steps aside from the door and gestures for her to step through. "Get home safely."

Setsuna leaves without another word, but despite his apology she can feel his gaze burning a hole in the back of her head.

* * *

**xx**

Reviews are much appreciated!

**xx**


	3. Schnapps on a Plane

**A/N: **Hey guys! Here's another installment :) Most of the chapters will run between 8k and 13k words, so this is probably the shortest one you all will be getting (besides the prologue). I really wasn't planning on uploading anymore until the whole story is finished, but you guys leave such awesome reviews!

Thanks to Pinstripe Fedora for having so much confidence in me, and I promise your questions will be answered – eventually… And also to Penshil for reviewing both chapters as well as "Timespan, Wingspan;" and of course, Charlieboy for being my first reviewer, and Andrea Salaiz and my Guest reviewer for appreciating my sense of humor! There will be more video game references etc. to come, and certainly more Mana/Setsuna bromance ;)

Anyway, on with the show! I'll try and post the following installment fairly soon since this chapter is mostly a lead-up.

(Also, happy late Fourth, for those Americans out there!)

* * *

**XXX**

Konoka really hadn't been kidding about wanting to do things together.

The following Monday she'd even gifted Setsuna a phone for the express purpose of calling each other whenever they wanted.

Although Setsuna learned from Mana that refusing an offer is the polite thing to do, she hadn't argued too hard about that once she learned she can manage her WoW character's equipment using an app. Beyond that, there's also the convenience of an interactive bus schedule, a GPS, and not to mention Angry Birds.

"Where did you get that?" Mana leans over her desk to check out the fancy iPhone.

"Konoka gave it to me."

She's about to ask why, but spots the person in question walking towards them anyway. Several employees straighten up in their seats, a few wiping drool off their faces, as Konoka makes her way past the cubicles. She leans against the back of Setsuna's chair and watches her play games for a moment before speaking.

"Enjoying your new phone?"

"Yes, actually," Setsuna responds while slicing a flurry of strawberries in Fruit Ninja, "Thank you again."

"Don't worry about it," Konoka waves the thank you off and waits for Setsuna to be done with her game. Four minutes later she's still going at it though. Another three minutes and Setsuna's score is completely off the charts.

"You have some seriously ridiculous reflexes," Konoka comments, genuinely impressed.

"I've had a lot of experience with sharp objects. You kind of have to be fast."

A few feet away Mana puts her hand on her forehead and shakes her head.

_Who says that?_

But to her surprise, Konoka goes right along with it.

"Let me guess… in WoW you're a warrior, but I think in real life you're more like a rogue? Or maybe a ninja or something, like my dad."

Setsuna finally looks up from her phone, purposely losing her game.

"Your dad's a ninja?"

"Um, kinda… actually, there's something I wanted to talk to you about in my office."

Pause.

"Is it about your dad being a ninja?"

_Thunk_.

Mana can't help but let her head hit her desk at that remark. It's completely miraculous that Konoka even wants to talk to someone as absurdly maladjusted as Setsuna. She's still not even sure what brought it on in the first place.

But then again, Konoka herself hardly seems the perfect picture of normal either. Her reactions are pretty unusual, and despite her social class, she hardly seems to care about who she spends her time with. Or what she spends her time doing, for that matter. It's hard to tell if she's too nice, or just oblivious, but either way it's turned out rather conveniently for Setsuna. The two make quite a pair.

As far as the strangeness goes, Mana can only guess it's due to her upbringing. And apparently having a ninja as a father.

Konoka puts her hand behind her head nervously, a doppleganger of her father, and admits, "Kind of, actually."

She leads Setsuna to her office and Mana's slightly disappointed to see her entertainment go. At least until she spots Setsuna's iPhone on her desk. She decides she's going to have to give the girl a lesson about leaving her nice things in the open.

But until then: Fruit Ninja.

**XXX**

Setsuna is sitting comfortably in her favorite chair and spinning a pen between her fingers. Staring out at the skyline of the city from the huge windows along the wall, she half-listens to Konoka rifling through papers and mumbling to herself.

"Where the heck did I put it…"

Slamming a drawer shut she stands up and leans against her desk, tapping her nails on its surface.

"Ah _ha_!"

She goes to the file cabinet against the wall and pulls out some folders before finally coming back to sit down, letter in hand. She plops in her chair in that unusual way and this time lands cross-legged.

"Here it is."

Setsuna stares at the envelope on the desk. It's blank except for a name: _Eishun Konoe_.

"Is that for your dad?"

Konoka shakes her head.

"Nope, it's _from _my dad. This company works pretty closely with a particular contracting firm – one of the biggest in the world. Their CEO is currently in Japan doing some project or other in Kyoto, and since it's part of my job, my dad's sending me there to 'maintain relations' or something," she explains, air-quotes and all.

"I see, so the letter is for this company's representative."

Konoka shakes her head again.

"Not quite. Talking to this woman is kind of a side-task. He's actually sending me there mostly just to deliver this. It's for some of his personal business associates, not related to the company…"

She goes silent for a second, fumbling with her words.

"My dad is… I know this is kind of obscure, but have you ever heard of an old-school martial art called Shinmeryuu?"

Setsuna abruptly stops spinning her pen.

"Your dad trained with them?"

"Oh," Konoka looks appropriately surprised, "So you know about them?"

"I've heard of them."

If "heard" and "impersonated" mean the same thing, anyway…

"That puts you a step ahead of most people," Konoka says with a smile, glad she doesn't have to explain too thoroughly. "They believe in all kinds of weird stuff, so I never had much to do with it. Not that I'm opposed to things like fortune-telling or stuff like that," she corrects herself quickly, "But these guys take it to a whole new level; it's kind of cult-like. They seriously believe they protect the world from evil."

Konoka rolls her eyes at the supposed absurdity while that very same "evil" shifts nervously in her seat.

"Anyway, my dad actually became one of their leaders while he lived in Japan."

"Your dad helps _run_ the Shinmeryuu?"

Konoka shrugs. "I guess so, yeah."

That is _very _not good for her mission, Setsuna knows.

The Shinmeryuu's cult-like insistence that they protect the world from evil exists because they _actually do_ protect the world from evil. Or demons, as the case may be. Setsuna is only vaguely versed in their behaviors from Evangeline, but she knows they're not to be messed with. She's no slouch with a sword herself, but there's no doubt in her mind that someone as presumably skilled as Konoka's father could kill her pretty easily. And probably without anyone noticing.

_Is that why her dad was staring at me like that? Could he tell?_

There should technically be no way to identify her as a demon just by looking at her, and her half-humanness should hopefully help disguise any metaphysical traits that would otherwise give her away. But that doesn't mean it's not possible.

_But considering how protective he is of Konoka, I doubt he would've let me walk away from that house so easily if he knew what I am…_

Regardless, this is not good.

Konoka thankfully interprets Setsuna's nervousness as disbelief.

"I know it's kind of hard to believe in that type of stuff, but my dad's super into it. And the reason I'm telling you this is because," she averts her gaze, "I know we don't know each other that well, but I can tell you have a really level head. I could use that while I'm in a foreign country trying to do business I hardly know anything about. So I was kind of wondering if you'd come with me…?"

"To Japan?"

"Yep."

"Where the Shinmeryuu are?"

"Yep."

…_Shit_.

On the one hand, saying yes could end very, very badly. Not only is there the potential of being killed and getting her soul sent back to Hell, making it _extremely_ difficult to explain to Nagi and Asuna what happened, but if everything were found out, the angels would be on full alert. There's no way she, or anyone else willing to try, would get another chance at this.

On the other hand, saying no would undoubtedly put a big dent in her progress thus far. And depending on how long the trip is, it might also be difficult to pick back up where they left off. Not to mention she'd have Evangeline and Mana complaining about how long it's taking her to get anything done.

"How long would we be gone?" She finally asks.

Konoka smiles, taking her question as a positive sign. "Three weeks. And don't worry; the company will pay for everything. We even get first-class tickets."

"Tickets to what?"

"The airplane, silly."

_Airplane?_

Well, she's never been on an airplane…

And hadn't Evangeline told her to enjoy herself? …Kind of?

"Okay," she says finally, and Konoka bites her lip to contain a girly squeal.

"Thank you thank you thank you! It'll be _so _much more fun if I have someone going with me. We're supposed to leave this Thursday, is that alright with you?"

"That should be fine. Let me run it over with my roommate and make sure I'm not forgetting anything."

"Sure," Konoka says, still smiling, "This is going to be so cool…"

_I certainly hope so_, Setsuna thinks, trying to hide her nervousness.

**XXX**

Setsuna waited until after work to discuss the trip with Mana, and now she's glad she did.

"Do you realize how idiotic this is?" Mana shouts – or as close to shouting as the apathetic girl can get, anyway.

"I don't think it's so bad. It's not like I have to walk in there with her when she hands the letter over. Besides, don't you think it'll be a good opportunity to get closer to her?"

Those are valid points, but Mana still can't help but be worried about it. If it were her, or someone with more experience, she could trust that even if the Shinmeryuu were suspicious she could talk her way out of it or remedy the situation through force. But Setsuna? Setsuna wouldn't even realize she'd walked into the damn school until she was face-to-face with a sword pointed at her.

She takes a deep breath and holds it for a second before exhaling.

_Maybe that's a bit harsh_. Setsuna is hardly the most appropriate candidate to bump noses with an opposing force, but she _has_ come quite a way since she'd been dropped in their living room. And the trip would undoubtedly speed up her progress, which means the money comes in sooner. Still, Mana can't figure out how the hell no one had mentioned that her boss's father is a leader of the most prominent demon-slaying school on Earth. It's kind of a big oversight.

"That's true," Mana concedes, "But if you're going I want you to be able to contact me if anything goes wrong."

"You mean on the phone? I think I have international calling –"

"Verbal communication could be risky depending on the situation. Wait here."

Mana leaves her in the living room and disappears into the kitchen. Setsuna can hear a couple of drawers opening and closing, and the taller woman reappears with a paring knife in one hand and the kitchen's rug in the other.

Setsuna doesn't like where this is going.

"What are we doing with those?"

"Making a contract."

She puts the rug on the floor and gestures for Setsuna to sit across from her. She does so, though tentatively.

"What kind of contract?"

"It's called a pactio. I think you made one with Asuna, although you probably didn't realize it. You have the card for one at least."

Setsuna's been keeping it faithfully in her pocket despite the fact that she has no idea what it does. Pulling it out, she examines her picture and the various symbols in the corners. It's certainly pretty, with its white background and the circular diagram imprinted on the other side. Her own image appears apathetic, being true to her nature, and her wings are half folded against her back. In one hand she carries the long blade she'd trained with when she'd been in Heaven. Since she'd lied about being part of the Shinmeryuu to explain her lack of reaction concerning the existence of an alternate dimension, they'd offered it to her as her personal training weapon. 'To help her get accustomed.'

The irony is, unfortunately, lost on her.

"I guess I must have; maybe while we were training or something. I don't know what it does though," Setsuna admits, placing the card on the floor.

"A card of that power probably has two functions. The first is telepathic communication. If you touch it to your forehead, the person it's linked to can hear your thoughts."

"I think I remember Asuna saying something about that," Setsuna agrees, putting the card back in her pocket.

"The other function is to call forth your true image. As you've probably noticed, Guardians alter their appearance slightly when they come back to Earth so they're not approached by people they knew while they lived here."

"Oh. That's why my eyes are black and I'm not so pale, then?"

Mana shakes her head in disbelief. That someone could notice their appearance change and not question it is… something. She's not sure what, but it's certainly _something_.

"Right. The image on the card will always be what you actually look like, although angels always appear with their wings, thankfully for your cover. However, unlike most angels on Earth, If you activate it your wings will also return. And possibly that sword," Mana adds after a moment of thought. "Beyond that, depending on how the pactio is made and who it's made with, you may also get a special item that can be summoned as well. But ours won't be powerful enough for that, so don't bother yourself with those details."

"So how do we make one? I don't remember doing it with Asuna."

Mana lifts the knife to her arm and tests its sharpness before responding. Seemingly happy with the result, she replies, "That's probably because she activated the pactio while you both were already bleeding from training, and you'd already consented by signing the Guardian's contract. That's one of two ways to do it: by exchanging blood."

"What's the other way?"

"It can also be invoked by a kiss."

"Oh. Well why don't we just –"

"No."

"But –"

"_No_."

"Okay," Setsuna sighs, not really understanding what the big deal is. It's a pretty simple act, and to her it certainly seems more attractive than cutting herself open.

Mana holds the knife out to her.

"Certain spirits govern the making of pactios, and it has to be clear the contract is consensual. Do you agree that providing your blood makes you a willing participant?"

Setsuna eyes the knife and sighs in resignation.

"Yes."

She grabs it by the handle, trying to decide how to go about it. Finally she grips the blade loosely with her left hand, and with nothing more than a grimace, pulls it through with her right. The blood comes quickly and spills onto the rug.

Setsuna looks at Mana for approval and the gunman nods, taking the blade and repeating the action on her own hand. They push their bleeding palms together.

"Pactio, _invocationem_."

For a moment nothing happens and Setsuna thinks maybe it didn't work, but a glowing light from the floor quickly proves her wrong. It flashes only briefly, but it's long enough for her to recognize the diagram. When the light dies down Mana separates their hands and picks up the two cards sitting between them. She glances briefly at the picture before handing one to Setsuna.

"The picture's different," Setsuna remarks, turning it over in the hand that isn't bleeding profusely. It's only a slight difference in position and angle, but the colors of the card itself are reversed as well; the background is black and the lettering is white.

"The image changes depending on who you make the contract with. The coloration is due to our demonic heritage."

Setsuna goes to put the card away but changes her mind.

"How would I summon my wings, if I need them?"

"Hold the card and say _adeat_. Reversing it would be _abeat. _Just don't do it accidentally," Mana warns. She can already imagine Setsuna attempting to activate the contract in an inappropriate place just to see if it works.

"I won't."

She pockets the card and lets Mana pick up the rug to throw in the washer, and they both rifle through the medicine cabinets for bandages. After running through a few more details with Mana and establishing that, _yes_, Setsuna will not jeopardize her mission or Mana's paycheck, she's finally dismissed.

When she's back in her room Setsuna opens her window and leans out, taking a deep breath and staring at the tree line in the distance. She idly plays with the two cards in her pocket and thinks about her wings, and how nice it would be to fly out this window.

_No chance of that, though_. To preserve her identity, Mana had sealed them for her when she'd arrived on Earth. Even though she'd been born with wings, she'd never really gotten to use them. Just having them in Hell got her locked up and abused; she'd hate to see what would've happened if she'd actually _flown_.

Setsuna frowns, memories of her early life coming to the surface of her mind. The abuse had never made much sense to her. Demons despise angels – she's aware of that – but her wings are _demon's_ wings. Angels' wings are made of magic, while hers are physically attached to her back; and besides that, they're only white because of a genetic defect

Still, they'd looked close enough to the angels' version for her to be made an example out of anyway.

Ironically, they're the same reason she was selected for this mission, and now it's _her_ that's going to rescue her tormentors from certain doom. She was the only one in Hell able to pass for an angel both physically and spiritually, having a half-human soul.

Setsuna sighs, not wanting to think about where she'd come from. It's much easier to forget.

Still, the thought of flying lingers. Her trip to Heaven had been the first time she'd ever _really_ gotten to be airborne. The feeling was incredible.

Turning away from the window, she leaves the cards alone and gets ready for bed. Even if she won't be using her wings, hopefully she'll be up in the sky on Thursday anyway.

**XXX**

On Wednesday night there's a minor debacle concerning Setsuna's lack of passport.

"You couldn't have told me you didn't have one earlier?" Mana gripes, putting on her overcoat and grabbing her keys off the hook.

"I didn't know I needed one."

Mana decides not to argue any more than that; it's partly her responsibility for not realizing it sooner. Setsuna couldn't possibly have a passport because even if she'd ordered one the first day she'd gotten here – which she couldn't have because her forged birth certificate and social security card weren't made yet – in all likelihood she still wouldn't have gotten it in the mail by now.

But it's still obnoxious to have to run out at eleven at night to do some expensive fake ID making with a few shady individuals.

Regardless, she gets it done and arrives back at the apartment looking a bit worse for wear at around six the next morning. Setsuna's just finished packing at that point, and Mana tosses the forged passport on top of her suitcase.

"You're going to want to leave now if your flight's at nine. It's going to take you at least an hour to get to the airport."

"Thanks," Setsuna says, gesturing at the passport, and heads out the door.

After struggling through check in and security with the directions of a friendly concierge, she manages to make it to the departure gate with an hour to spare. She finds Konoka sitting with a _People_ magazine spread across her lap.

"Hey!" She calls out, pulling a headphone out of her ear and looking up from an article about Jennifer Aniston's wedding, "Did you get through everything alright? I would've come to pick you up but my dad insisted we come straight here."

"It was fine. I've never been in an airport though, so I had to get scanned when I couldn't figure out security procedures."

"You've _never_ been in an airport?"

"Is that strange?"

Setsuna puts her backpack down and takes a seat, pulling out her phone to check the time.

"I don't know actually," Konoka offers sympathetically. "I kind of assumed everyone flies at some point or another, but I guess maybe today is your 'sometime.'"

Setesuna's about to say that she _has_ flown, just not on a plane, but figures that might be too hard to explain. Instead she grabs her laptop out of her backpack.

"Want to do a dungeon while we wait?"

"I don't know how good the wifi is here, but we can try."

Forty-five minutes into their adventure a voice comes on over the speakers announcing that their plane is boarding the passengers in first class.

Konoka leads them to their seats: huge comfy armchairs in a special, secluded cabin complete with a bar area and full service breakfast menu. They're greeted by wait staff and an apology that "they're out of red wine today, so white wine is half-price."

Setsuna stares at the scene and tries not to let the absolute awe she's feeling show through. This is more luxurious than anything she could've ever imagined, _and_ Konoka let her have the window seat. It's hard to imagine that for other passengers on their flight this is all nothing particularly out of the ordinary, when for her it's _literally_ the best day of her life.

Despite her best efforts to maintain some air of normality, some of her surprise does show through, and Konoka watches the other girl's amazement at the scenery outside the window during takeoff.

_That expression is priceless_, she thinks, trying not to laugh at the child-like wonder on Setsuna's normally stoic features.

They haven't known each other very long at all, but as far as they've been together she's never seen Setsuna look so… something other than apathetic. Konoka decides that, although she isn't one to rub her money in other people's faces – or at least not on purpose –she'll make an exception today.

"Are you hungry?" She asks, handing Setsuna a menu.

"Kind of, but I can't really afford –"

"Get anything you want, my treat."

"Really? Is that okay?"

Even though using her money is kind of a cheap way to start a friendship, this has been the only thing thus far to get any kind of real reaction out of the girl. Setsuna actually looks _happy_.

_Heck, I might even be able to get her to smile for once_.

"Sure. And help yourself to dessert too, and drinks if you want them."

Setsuna opens the menu and her eyes pour over all the options. Thus far she's only had what Mana can "cook," and what she's learned to "cook," which basically means anything that doesn't involve steps more complicated than boiling water.

_Blueberry buttermilk pancakes, chocolate chip waffles, corned beef hash with eggs …_

She tries to remind herself to keep her cool – _normal people don't freak out about breakfast _– but faced with the idea of endless gourmet food she's never tried, it's pretty difficult.

Konoka watches her, but it's still not quite a smile. She tries again.

"And if you want, I think these chairs also do massages, and – _oh_, we can watch a movie or two if you like; they provide headphones and everything."

_There we go_.

"This is incredible," Setsuna gushes, surprisingly infectious smile intact, "But are you sure it's okay? It's kind of expensive."

She's asking mostly per Mana's instructions about being polite, but she's already flipping through the viewing options on the TV.

"Like I said Silly, it's totally fine. That's what friends are for right?"

"Then I think I won't be a very good friend," Setsuna remarks, thinking of her bank account. She'd been taking Mana's advice about saving, and mentally counts how many of these items she could afford.

_Not many_.

Konoka laughs at the not-quite-a-joke, seemingly perfectly content with that arrangement.

"Don't worry about it; I'm sure you can pay me back another way some other time. For now, what do you say we eat breakfast?"

Setsuna is more than happy to take that deal.

**XXX**

_2 Hours, 1 Drink_

**XXX**

"Enough is _enough_! I have _had_ it with these motherfucking _snakes_ on this motherfucking _plane_!"

Even though it's the third time she's seen this movie, Konoka can't help but crack up at that line.

"This movie is so ridiculous," she says between giggles, trying to stifle the noise for the sake of the other passengers. Setsuna nods in agreement.

"I don't understand why the gangsters didn't just get on the plane and kill the guy themselves."

Konoka shrugs and takes a sip of her Gin Fizz.

"Because then there wouldn't be a movie."

"That makes sense, I guess."

**XXX**

_4 Hours, 3 drinks_

**XXX**

"Oh man, is it me or does this feel _extra_ good right now?"

"I don't really have a baseline to judge from," Setsuna replies, voice shaking from the vibrations of the massage chair, "But it feels pretty amazing."

They're both lying in their chairs, reclined to the maximum and letting the automatic massagers do their work.

"I dunno," Konoka stretches languidly and sighs in contentment. "Maybe I just drank too much. These things just taste like lemonade though; it's hard to believe there's really alcohol in them."

Setsuna picks up the glass and stares dubiously at the liquid inside. With the go-ahead from Konoka she takes a sip.

"It kind of has a weird aftertaste, but it's pretty good."

"Here, try this one," Konoka points to a drink on the menu. "I've had these before, they just taste like peaches."

**XXX**

_6 Hours, ?_

**XXX**

Setsuna can admit that she's stumbling a bit coming back from the bathroom. She's seen other people get drunk on TV and in movies, and they always seem to make such huge asses out of themselves. She hadn't really understood why, or why someone would purposely incapacitate himself – until now, anyway. It's kind of fun to be a little out of your head.

"Hey, hey," Konoka holds up the gossip magazine she'd been reading earlier, "Who do you think's hotter: Chris Hemsworth or Channing Tatum?"

"Um, I dunno," Setsuna squints at the pictures. "They both kind of look the same to me."

"Ahh, I see. Buff, blonde, white men not your thing?"

"I'm not sure if it's that, exactly; I just don't really look at men."

Konoka sits up suddenly, mouth agape.

(She's definitely drunk.)

"_Oooooh_, you like women then? Hey," she nudges Setsuna in the ribs, "Have you ever slept with a girl before? What was it like?"

"Er, wait," Setsuna replies quickly, "No to both those things. I don't really look at _anyone_," she corrects herself, noting again how much easier it is to talk with alcohol in her system, "And I've also never slept with anyone."

"You've _never_ –"

Konoka cuts off her exclamation, noticing that some other passengers are glancing at them sideways. Pausing momentarily, she continues a bit more quietly when the spectators have lost interest and looked away.

"You've never had sex?"

"Nope."

"Are you super religious?"

"Not at all."

Konoka puts her thinking cap on and is suddenly struck by a thought. She leans back to get a better look at her traveling companion.

"How old are you?"

_That's a good question_.

Setsuna really has no idea. She pulls out her passport and checks the date inside.

"Apparently I'm twenty-four."

Konoka raises an eyebrow at her, obviously skeptical.

"How can you not know how old you are?"

"Uhhh…"

Maybe drinking wasn't the best idea.

"I didn't ever meet my parents," Setsuna blurts out. "They dropped me off at an orphanage when I was really young, before I can remember. Apparently they lived pretty crappy lives and thought I'd have a better chance without them."

Setsuna crosses her fingers and hopes her travelling companion doesn't catch on that she stole her story from _Futurama_.

"That's incredible," she mumbles, enthralled by the idea. Setsuna allows herself a mental sigh of relief. "What was the orphanage like?"

_That_, at least, is easy to answer.

"Hellish."

**XXX**

_10 Hours_

**XXX**

They're two hours from landing and Konoka has officially passed out.

She fell asleep strewn across her chair so that one leg is laying across Setsuna's lap and both her arms are dangling off the other side into the aisle, which would have certainly pissed off the stewardesses if they weren't in first-class and trained in the frustrating art of 'the customer is always right.' Even if the customer is drunkenly blocking half the walkway.

Except for the offending limb, Setsuna doesn't notice much of that though. She's staring out the window at the clouds, no longer inebriated, and wonders about her earlier conversations with Konoka.

How is she supposed to "get close" with _this – _this ridiculous, upbeat, naïve girl who she has nothing in common with? It's not like she dislikes Konoka or anything; as far as people on Earth go, she seems far more pleasant to spend time with than any of the other humans Setsuna has run into. But her mind is loaded with questions: she doesn't have anyone to help her, she still has very little idea how the Earth works, let alone the human mind, and she's _never_ had any friends or experiences that could possibly be of use now.

Except, maybe, Evangeline.

Would she call the vampire a friend?

She'd certainly _like_ to. Evangeline is the only person in Hell that'd ever spoken to her without malice, and had even been so kind as to stick up for her on occasion and lighten her "punishments."

But friendship? Friends are supposed to spend lots of time together, and do fun things, and tell secrets… But Setsuna doesn't have any secrets (from Evangeline anyway), and they couldn't possibly have done anything fun in their situation, so maybe that's why?

Or maybe it's just because her idea of friendship comes from watching _My Little Pony_.

Determined to solve the mystery, she puts Konoka in a reasonable position and retreats to the bathroom.

With the door shut behind her, she pulls out the little compact mirror Evangeline had gifted her and opens it. She's half expecting it to ring like a telephone, but it doesn't, and all she can see is her reflection. Until Evangeline's face appears in the mirror, causing her to nearly jump out of her skin.

"Setsuna?"

The girl in question pulls herself together and holds the mirror up so they're face to face.

"Hi."

"Is something wrong?" Evangeline asks, cutting right to the chase.

"Um, no, not really. I kind of just… wanted to talk."

The vampire raises an eyebrow and Setsuna thinks maybe this wasn't such a great idea.

"Okay, so talk."

"…So how are you doing?"

"Oh, you know, just fine and dandy down here in Hell watching this planet wither and die."

Setsuna winces at the remark.

"Ah, well, I'm working on that. I'm actually with Konoka now; we're headed to Japan for some kind of business."

"She invited you on a trip? I'm impressed."

"Really?" Setsuna can't quite keep the excitement out of her voice. Even if she can't call Evangeline a friend, she's certainly a mentor of sorts, and who doesn't want to impress their teacher?

"Yes, actually."

"I'm glad," Setsuna says happily before allowing her anxiety to show through. "But I've been kind of worried…"

"…About?"

"About getting close to Konoka. She said she wanted to be friends with me, but I still don't really understand what it is I'm supposed to be doing."

Evangeline smiles, and it's hard to tell if it's patronizing or if she's just amused.

"Oh, the complications of humanity," she rolls her eyes. "This isn't a concept that's easy to explain. How about you just… act natural? No, that won't work for you. Hmm…"

She disappears from the mirror, reappears, then disappears again. Presumably pacing.

"Okay, think of it like this," her image pops back up again. "You know you're close to someone when you're able to predict their thoughts and feelings because what _they're_ thinking and feeling affects how _you_ think and feel. Does that make sense?"

Setsuna considers the idea for a solid minute.

"No, not really."

"Don't worry, it will eventually. Until then, try not to worry too hard about it. If anything, remind yourself that she has a mind and emotions just like you do, and don't forget the golden rule. "

"Rule?"

"Treat others as you would like to be treated." Although she means what she's saying, it's obviously difficult for Evangeline to take that seriously.

"Okay, I think I can do that."

"Great. Now if there's nothing else –"

"Wait!" Setsuna holds up her hand reflexively even though the other woman can't see it. "There's just one more thing. Are we… close?"

"No."

Setsuna visibly slumps.

"You're such a dope," the vampire sighs. "If it makes you feel better, I consider us friends anyway."

"That's -!"

"_And_," she continues, cutting Setsuna off, "Don't forget when you're done with your mission you'll be a hero. When we're on Earth and not in such a hurry, maybe then we can spend more time together."

"I'd really like that," Setsuna is practically glowing at the notion. Of all the people in her life she values Evangeline the most.

The vampire smiles that same unreadable smile, but it drops from her face as she glances sideways at something outside the frame of the mirror.

"Keep up the good work then," she says distractedly, "There's something I have to take care of. I'll talk to you again soon."

The "line goes dead," so to speak, and her image fades back into the mirror until only Setsuna's reflection remains.

Confidence boosted, and with something exciting to look forward to, she turns around to head back to her seat only to come face to face with a stewardess.

She makes eye contact with the confused woman for a moment.

"I'm sorry," she says, looking Setsuna up and down. "The door was unlocked so I didn't think anyone would be in here…"

"Don't worry about it. I should've remembered to lock the door."

She glances at the compact in Setsuna's hand, then at Setsuna again.

"Were you just talking to your makeup?"

"…Yes?"

"I see."

After another moment of awkward eye contact, Setsuna steps around the dumbfounded stewardess and walks back to her seat.

* * *

**xx**

Reviews are appreciated muchly!

**xx**


	4. Fake It 'Til You Make It

**Fake It 'Til You Make It**

* * *

**XXX**

It's a difficult feeling to describe.

It's like when you look at a Da Vinci painting, and you _know_ that it's beautiful because it _must_ be beautiful with its hype, and its fame, and its classical artistic appeal. But at the same time, all you can see is a blob of color swirled in a way reminiscent of a child's finger paints.

That, in a nutshell, is how Setsuna feels as she's driven into the beautiful city of Kyoto.

At eleven in the morning the business district is loud, busy, and filled with people. Konoka puts her forehead against the front seat of the cab and squeezes her eyes shut.

"Maybe scheduling that meeting for the day we land was a bad idea," she mumbles through the pain of her headache.

"Can we postpone it?"

"Nah, I'd rather get it out of the way so we can enjoy a few days until the next one."

Giving Konoka a onceover, however, Setsuna wonders if that's really the best choice. Although it's morning in Japan, it's technically getting late in the U.S., and Konoka's decision to drink on the plane seems to have worked against her. The combination of alcohol and traffic is obviously causing quite a bit of discomfort despite her two hour nap.

Ten minutes from their destination, Konoka forces herself to sit up and straighten her clothes. She'd changed out of the comfortable ones she'd been wearing on the plane, and she fiddles with the buttons of her blouse and smooths down her skirt a bit nervously. And she's probably right to be nervous.

Her dad had really given her this job to help her learn how the working world functions, not necessarily because she's qualified. She certainly hadn't been a slouch in school; she'd graduated in the top ten of her class at Yale, but when her father offered her an internship for the position she'd had zero experience. Her mentor hadn't helped much either. He'd retired shortly after she started at the company, leaving her to skip several steps up the ladder and take his position (much to the chagrin of several other employees). The practices of the business world, despite her higher education, are very much a mystery to her in practice.

After a few months of trying to de-puzzle all the ridiculous etiquette and sitting on her butt for nine to eleven hours a day, the realization that she's not cut out for this job came quite easily to Konoka. But it's a bit late to change all that, so at least for now she's stuck in these highly uncomfortable, foreign situations. This time, though, there's at least one saving grace. The representative of the contracting firm is a woman her age, so at the very least they should get along alright. Although she'd also heard the woman's personal secretary can be quite hot-tempered.

The cab pulls over and she tips the driver handsomely, partly because she's generous, and partly because she's not used to using yen. The meeting place is an impressively large but disappointingly plain building. They get in the elevator for the sixth floor, and as the butterflies in her stomach emerge, Konoka is once again glad for Setsuna's company. Despite the fact that they hardly know each other, having such an easygoing and nonchalant person around is comforting.

Thankfully the receptionists speak English. They're guided into a conference room and handed soy vanilla lattes while they wait.

Setsuna pulls the lid off her cup and stares at the foamy coffee drink.

"Don't tell me you've never had a latte?" Konoka giggles at the look of concentration on the other girl's face.

"I have," she lies, being strange enough in her habits already without this added oddity, "I was just wondering if they're different in Japan."

"Oh. That's a good point."

Konoka pulls the lid off her drink and the two women stare thoughtfully into their cups.

Which is how the company's representative walks into the room and finds them. She clears her throat to get their attention and is immediately all smiles.

"Ms. Konoe, I presume?" She goes to Konoka and the two shake hands, "I'm Ayaka Yukihiro. It's a pleasure to meet you."

"It's a pleasure to meet you as well," Konoka responds just as pleasantly, although it's hard not to be intimidated by this woman. She's tall and blonde and beautiful, and it only takes one look at her to know that she's rich and important. She's the kind of person who wears her status like a second-skin, and whose presence alone would inform you she's in the room even if she isn't in your line of sight.

"I hope the trip was alright for you and Miss…?"

"Setsuna Sakurazaki," Setsuna shakes Ayaka's hand, trying to match the cheer exhibited by the other two women and failing by a large margin.

"It's nice to meet you. Are you Ms. Konoe's assistant?"

"More or less."

She doesn't really want to attempt to explain their strange relationship.

"I see. My own assistant will be in shortly, but until then, shall we sit down and discuss some business, Ms. Konoe?"

"You can call me Konoka, and that's fine with me. Although, to be honest Ms. Yukihiro –"

"Ayaka will be just fine as well," the woman smiles pleasantly.

"To be honest, Ayaka, I'm not sure how much business really needs to be discussed. On my end, the company hardly has any issues with your work – the building process in New York is going far more smoothly than expected, thanks to you."

"Oh, I'm sure that's an exaggeration, although a much appreciated one –"

_Bang_!

The three women at the table look up simultaneously as a fourth person nearly punts the door down. She's walking backwards to hold the door open with her backside, her left hand being occupied by a cup of coffee and the right hand full of papers. Her keys are also dangling from her mouth, and she spits them out on top of the pile of other things she dumps on the table.

Ayaka, although cringing slightly, still handles the situation with grace.

"Ladies, please meet my personal secretary –"

But even before Setsuna noticed the cluttered mass of objects the girl had been carrying, she saw the red pigtails and the hair-ties with the bells on them and already knew.

"Asuna?"

"Setsuna?!"

"You two know each other?" Ayaka glances back and forth between the two women, who are staring at each other in disbelief.

Asuna's mismatched eyes drift to Konoka, and comprehension dawns on her features.

"Oh, so the representative from the U.S. Ayaka kept talking about is – ah, so that makes sense because Setsuna is – _Oh_. Oh, huh. I probably should've realized that sooner."

Setsuna is still too surprised to say anything quite yet, and besides that, she doesn't know how to answer Ayaka's question.

The short version of the truth is that Asuna's technically (in Earth terms) dead.

The long version is that they'd met while Setsuna had been disguising herself as an angel. Moreover, only a certain class of angels come back to Earth in order to protect people of particular cosmic importance, and becoming a Guardian requires brutal and extensive combat training.

So who had trained her?

Asuna, of course.

The redhead was only in Heaven as a short reprieve from Earth at the time, but Nagi, the gatekeeper that greeted Setsuna when she'd arrived there, had partnered the two together for some reason. Asuna had mentioned that the person she guards is an important business figure, but it hadn't occurred to Setsuna that their two charges would know each other. The chances are pretty slim.

But then, the chances were pretty slim of Setsuna being assigned as Konoka's guardian in the first place – so small, in fact, that Evangeline had to cheat the system for her. So maybe this isn't such a big coincidence after all, in the grand scheme of things.

Regardless, Setsuna's not sure if this is a good thing or not.

After a nudge from Ayaka, Asuna finally answers her question.

"We went to high school together, but we lost touch after that. It's good to see you again buddy," she winks at Setsuna and slaps her on the back hard enough to make the girl almost spill her drink everywhere.

"Good to see you too. It's been a while," Setsuna plays along, replacing the lid of her coffee cup.

"Yeah, seriously. Hey, do you have time for lunch? The food here is great, and I'm sure Ayaka is willing to buy for all of us, right Blondie?"

For just a second Ayaka looks like she's about to drop her air of formality, but remembering her guests, she manages to hold on to it.

"You're more than welcome to go to lunch together after my business associate and I are done discussing –"

"Psh, forget that," Asuna interrupts, completely dismissing her supposed boss. "It's Konoka, right? What do you say we all go out to eat together? It'll be better than talking here, and I'll even let you guys get a separate table to yourselves so you can discuss your business or whatever. That way Setsuna and I can catch up at the same time."

"That sounds great actually." Konoka is more than happy for an opportunity to get out of this overly-formal setting.

"Well, I'm all for accommodating guests," Ayaka concedes. "If it suits you, Konoka, there's a sushi restaurant not too far from here."

Setsuna perks up at that. She's never had sushi.

Seeing her friend's excitement, Konoka agrees to the place, and they all pile into the back of a small SUV with an apology from Ayaka – "my limo driver is off for the afternoon since I wasn't expecting to go anywhere for a bit."

But being the rather extravagant person that she is, Ayaka had a second chauffeur arranged to take them all, albeit in a slightly less fanciful way. The drive should only be about ten minutes long, but an accident delays them and they wait for the policemen to wave their side of traffic around it. It's quiet at first, and Konoka wonders if she should try and start up a conversation. After a couple of minutes she finds she doesn't need to.

Despite their first impressions of the other businesswoman, Konoka and Setsuna have already discovered the hole in her otherwise perfectly glamorous armor. Its name is Asuna.

"So you're going to pay for my lunch, right?" Asuna nudges the blonde sitting next to her.

"Now, Asuna," Ayaka chides gently, maintaining her composure, "I don't see how that makes sense, considering I pay you to accompany me everywhere as it is. Although don't ask me why…" she mumbles the last part just loud enough for the other passengers to hear it. Konoka tries not to smile at the remark.

"Well _excuse_ me, Little Miss Arrogant, if I have to pay to live. Not that any amount of money is worth staying by _your_ side anyway. And it makes sense to pay for my food because it was my idea, and I should be compensated for my brilliance."

"For your information, 'Little Miss Obnoxious,' my company is much coveted. You're just too dense to appreciate it," the composure is slowly melting away, "And I certainly could afford to pay you for your supposed brilliance, since your good ideas only pop up once every year or so."

"Maybe _you're_ just too conceited to appreciate _my_ ingenuity!"

"Oh," Ayaka gasps, putting a hand to her heart in mock surprise, "Was that a five-syllable word coming out of your mouth? I had no idea you'd evolved beyond the intelligence of a monkey. Since you've neglected to inform me of this development, I'll have to dock your pay."

Asuna leans over and pokes Ayaka in the forehead. "Is a _monkey_ smart enough to cover for your ass when word got out that you were sleeping with a guy eight years younger than –"

Composure is officially lost.

"_Asuna Kagurazaka,_ if I hear _one more word_ come out of your mouth, God will never forgive me for the things I'll do to you, you _imbecile_ –"

"As _if_! I'm pretty sure God still hasn't forgiven you for taking advantage of what's-his-face you damn _cougar_ –"

"If I'm a cougar than _you're_ an incestuous pervert for getting a crush on a guy twice your age who happens to look just like your _father_ –"

"_Oh_, so you've sunk that low? Well how about the time when –"

The car lurches to a stop outside the restaurant, conveniently preventing the verbal fight from escalating into an all-out physical brawl. Konoka and Setsuna stare uncertainly at the two women, who haven't budged and are still pointing accusing fingers at each other and glaring with unrivaled intensity. And then:

"So will you pay for me?"

"Fine. But you have to do my hair on Saturday. I have a date."

"Deal."

Without another word the two get out of the car, grabbing their respective lunchmates. Konoka and Ayaka are led to a table, and Asuna guides the still startled Setsuna to the sushi bar. Setsuna's still a little too concerned with what she'd just witnessed to even be worried about the unfamiliar high-class atmosphere. The chef asks her something in Japanese, and she stares at him blankly until Asuna thankfully steps in and orders for both of them.

"You alright?" She asks, referring to Setsuna's less-apathetic-than-usual expression.

"I'm fine. Are _you_ alright?"

"Should I not be?"

"I'm not really sure. Didn't you and Ayaka just fight?"

"Yep," Asuna agrees nonchalantly, distracted by the chef placing her plate of spicy tuna in front of her.

"Isn't that bad?"

"Not particularly. Why would it be?"

"Because…"

Why is it bad? Setsuna isn't quite sure of the _exact_ reason, but TV and books have taught her that people fighting is usually a sign of a relationship going south.

"Because fighting creates negative feelings, and don't you and Ayaka have to be close in order for, um, you know," she finishes vaguely, glancing pointedly at all the people sitting around them.

"Oh, that. We _are _friends; our relationship just doesn't function like normal."

Setsuna pokes a suspicious looking piece of dark yellow fish on her plate before answering.

"How does it function then?"

"I guess it kind of comes down to the fact that Ayaka doesn't take shit from anyone, if you know what I mean," Asuna starts thoughtfully, pausing to shove a piece of fish in her mouth. "People are always trying to take advantage of her through nice gestures because she's rich, and lots of douchy guys in the business world think they can manipulate her through compliments because she's a woman. So now the only way to prove you're being sincere is to, you know, annoy the crap out of her. Does that make sense?"

Setsuna tries, she really does, but just… _what?_

Asuna shakes her head at the other woman's dumbfounded expression.

"Man, I don't know what your first life was like, but it seems like the Shinmeiryuu or whatever didn't teach you a whole lot about other people."

Damn, she was just starting to forget about the whole Shinmeiryuu ordeal with Konoka and her dad. Did Asuna really have to remind her? Trying not to sigh, she maintains the lie anyway.

"Apparently not. I'm still not quite sure what to do with Konoka, either."

Setsuna finally tries the strange looking thing on her plate and nearly gags at how fishy it is.

"Yeah, sea urchin is pretty gross if you ask me," Asuna offers her a sip of tea sympathetically. "Ayaka and I have a weird relationship, but we're still close – closer than I was with anyone in my first life, even. Relationships come in all shapes and sizes. I'm sure you and Konoka will find a way to get along that suits the both of you; it just takes time. And, I mean, you _have_ to be compatible right? You got chosen as her guardian, after all."

Setsuna grimaces. Normally that might be the case, but certainly not when she'd cheated for it to happen.

"Um, yeah, I guess. I don't suppose you know of any shortcuts?"

"Short of saving her life, not really. Don't worry so much!" Asuna slaps her on the back again in that overly enthusiastic way, "It'll happen in its own time. You made friends with me, didn't you?"

That _is_ true, but only because Setsuna had lied about everything that mattered at the time. Not to mention they'd had luck on their side in the form of Nagi. She remembers her trip to Heaven and meeting Asuna vividly, since it was her first time being completely unshackled.

Her journey started in Hell, of course, with Evangeline snapping her neck.

Usually she would be trapped in the same plane of reality that her physical form existed in; if a soul isn't carried elsewhere, it becomes reborn in a new body in the same dimension. Setsuna hadn't needed much of that particular explanation though. She had been killed and reborn in Hell enough times to know that already.

What she _hadn't_ known was that it's possible to escape your plane of reality. After she'd died, so to speak, she'd appeared, stumbling and frayed from traversing the in-between space, in front of Nagi.

"The gatekeeper wouldn't know blue if the sky fell on his head," Evangeline had once said, and she certainly appeared to be right. He'd taken one look at her wings and marched her right through the gate with only a couple of remarks about how strange it was that she'd seemingly appeared from thin air.

"Normally, recently deceased humans are guided to a different city," he'd explained.

And then he'd introduced her to Asuna and suggested that Setsuna train under her. The redhead hadn't taken too well to that at first. After a rocky, awkward start, they'd started their training together and proceeded to spend an obscene amount of time beating the crap out of each other. Somehow, some way, between the blood and the bruises and the battle taunts, they'd become friends.

But for the life of her Setsuna can't put her finger on_ how_, damnit.

Asuna's chopsticks waving in front of her face snap Setsuna out of her reverie.

"Hey, did you hear me?"

"Um, no, sorry."

"I asked if I can eat the rest of your food," she motions to what's left of Setsuna's sushi.

"Go ahead."

She grabs one last salmon roll off the plate and pushes it over to Asuna.

"You kind of reminded me of something just now. Why is it that nobody on Earth can remanifest themselves when they die?"

"Earth is weird," Asuna explains with her mouth half-full. "There's a lot of magical energy in Heaven that allows us complete control over our environment, including our physical body and soul. Earth is governed by completely different forces. All the rules are different."

"Is there a reason there's so little magic here?"

Asuna pauses with her chopsticks halfway to her mouth. Her expression is surprisingly serious.

"Most people would tell you it's because we're in a different dimension, but I'm not so sure about that."

"What makes you say so?"

The serious moment seeming to have passed, Asuna shrugs and says flippantly, "Just a hunch."

Setsuna drops the subject. For some reason it seems like every new thing she learns is accompanied by several unanswered questions, but Setsuna is no conspiracy theorist. She cares more about getting her mission done than she does about the details. Although thus far, it certainly seems like the higher-ups in Heaven make a lot of grand, vague statements without much substance to them.

_But what do I know_?

Setsuna hadn't even known half this stuff existed until a couple of months ago. She's hardly qualified to be deciphering how much of it is true or not.

"Stuffing your face as usual, I see."

They both look up to see Ayaka leaning against the counter and shaking her head at Asuna's rather poor manners.

"I apologize for the way this one eats, Setsuna. I hope she didn't steal all your food."

"She gahv eh to mee!" Asuna shouts indignantly through her sushi.

"I'm sure," the blonde mumbles, unconvinced. "In any case, I've already taken care of the bill. Are you ready to go, oh dear assistant of mine?"

"Yeah, yeah, I'm done. Are we heading home then?"

"Not quite. Since Konoka and I had such a good time, and since she's new to the area, we're going to escort her to her next destination."

Konoka appears from the bathroom then, drying damp hands on her shirt. She smiles at Ayaka – a much more natural expression than the strained formality from earlier.

_Looks like they really did have a good time,_ Asuna muses. She turns to Konoka.

"So where are we going?"

"I have to drop a letter off for my dad, actually. I figured I'd get it out of the way now so I wouldn't have to worry about it."

Setsuna feels her heart drop, and Asuna's voice sounds muffled to her.

"Is it for another business or something?"

"Well, not really," Konoka averts her eyes sheepishly. "Have you heard of the Shinmeryuu?"

Asuna's eyes widen in recognition.

"What! No way! You must be excited about that, eh, Setsuna?" She elbows the other girl in the ribs good-naturedly, snapping her out of her panic-induced daze.

"Um, actually, I'm not feeling so well – I think I might just wait in the hotel…"

"Nuh uh, don't think you can get out of this one. I bet you were just going easy on me in – in high school," Asuna catches herself, "Now's your chance to show off how good you really are."

"Er, no, really, I shouldn't –"

More like she _can't_.

"Wait, show off what?" Konoka interrupts their banter.

"Don't tell me Setsuna here didn't tell you? Shy as always, I see."

"Tell me what?"

"Asuna, r – really, I'm perfectly fine with –"

"That she does sword fighting! Just like those Shinmeiryuu guys, right?" Asuna asks, all smiles and completely oblivious to Setsuna's rapidly escalating terror.

"Seriously? Setsuna, you didn't mention that," Konoka gushes excitedly. "That's so cool! You have to show me."

"But –"

"_Please_?"

Asuna nudges her again and glances at Konoka, _make an impression!_ she doesn't quite say, but it's written on her face anyway. It's clear the redhead isn't going to let Setsuna get out of this gracefully, and Setsuna certainly doesn't want to make the situation worse by trying.

"Okay."

Konoka's face lights up, and Setsuna tries to smile in return. The pit of utter dread in her stomach makes that pretty hard though.

"C'mon," Asuna whispers to her when they're all on the way to the car again, "This is a good opportunity! Just show off a little bit and you guys'll have something to talk about – people like people who are cool and interesting, y'know?"

Right. Cool. And interesting. Not people who walk into fights and get their butts spectacularly kicked in a blinding show of failure.

But maybe she won't even have to fight! Why would the Shinmeiryuu challenge her to a duel, anyway?

Then again…

Setsuna scratches the spot on her back where her wings should be and knows they'd have at least one very, very good reason.

**XXX**

The Shinmeiryuu school's entrance is hidden halfway up a mountain and deep in the woods. The path doesn't allow for travel by car for the last half a mile, so the four women climb out and walk the rest of the way. Ayaka and Konoka seem unusually excited to be taking such a long hike, but apparently the Shinmeiryuu complex is a beautiful example of traditional architecture: flat wooden buildings with ornate roofs, paper sliding doors, the whole shebang.

It hardly seems worth looking forward to since there's enough of that already in Kyoto. In Setsuna's opinion, if they're _that_ impressed by old buildings, they should've just gone to the historical district.

But maybe Setsuna's just being a party pooper about it. Not that she doesn't have a reason to be, considering she's walking into what could literally be a one-way ticket to Hell. She still tries not to rain on everyone else's parade though, but the best she can do is keep silent. It might be suspicious to try too hard to get away at this point anyway. (Probably not to Konoka and Ayaka, since normal people probably don't assume someone running away from a religious-type institution is a demon, but she doesn't need to give Asuna any hunches).

There's a huge stone stairway leading up the last hill, and it crests under a wooden archway. Setsuna pauses at the foot of the climb.

"I'll meet you guys at the top, if you don't mind. I'm still not really feeling well."

"Do you want me to wait with you?" Konoka asks, putting her hand on Setsuna's forehead worriedly.

"No need, I'll just be a second."

When Konoka hesitates Setsuna tries to smile reassuringly. "Really, I'm fine. Go on ahead."

"Okay, if you're sure…"

She turns away unsurely and heads up the stairs with the other two. Setsuna stays leaning against a tree and pretending to catch her breath until they pass under the archway and out of sight. She pulls out her pactio card with Mana and stares at her picture contemplatively. She really, really, _really_ doesn't want to bug the other woman, considering her usual impatience with frivolous communication. But then, she'd probably be even angrier if she found out Setsuna's planning to walk headfirst into danger without telling her first. Relenting, she puts the card to her forehead.

_Do I say this out loud, or…?_

_**Say what out loud?**_

Mana's voice rings loud and clear in her head.

_Um, nevermind, I figured it out._

_**Great. Now what do you need?**_

_Do you remember what I talked to you about, with Konoka and her dad and the Shinmeiryuu…?_

_**Yes.**_

Her tone is clipped and Setsuna knows she's already on thin ice.

…_I'm kind of there. At the Shinmeiryuu school, I mean. But – but it's not my fault – they coerced me into it –_

**Who **_**coerced you into it?**_

Setsuna cringes. She'd also neglected to let Mana know who she'd run into.

_Konoka, and the business woman Ayaka, and, um, Asuna…_

Pause.

_**Asuna, as in, the guardian angel Asuna?**_

_That's right._

_**So let me get this straight. You're a half-demon whose walking into a demon-slaying school, while accompanied by the angel on whose ignorance of your nature this mission depends?**_

_Did you have to put it like that?_

_**How the hell else am I supposed to put it?**_

Setsuna briefly breaks contact with the card – who knew you could yell while thinking?Once the headache-inducing sensation wears off, she places it back on her forehead.

_So what do you suggest I do?_

Even halfway around the world, Mana's frustration is palpable.

_**Are you near the entrance now?**_

_Yes._

_**Are there little paper tags on top of the archways?**_

Setsuna squints up the staircase. Indeed, there's a small, rectangular piece of paper with some scribbled kanji on it.

_Yes._

_**Don't walk under those without everyone else with you. They're wards; they'll detect demonic energy, but you can dilute it by being in a group of humans or angels.**_

_Okay, I won't._

She doesn't mention she'd let the group go on ahead, of course.

_Anything else?_

_**Knowing you, you've probably already promised to do something stupid, like duel one of their students, so –**_

_I wouldn't do that._

_**You're lying.**_

_Wha – how did you know?!_

Mana sighs. She hadn't really known, of course, but count on Setsuna to fall for something as simple as that.

_**Just listen. If you **_**do**_** find yourself in that situation – and I suggest you avoid it – you have to win. Or at the very least, you have to avoid being hit.**_

_I'm guessing that's not just to prevent getting my head sliced off?_

_**That too, but Shinmeiryuu warriors harness an energy called chi. It's similar to magic, but easier to gather on Earth. They imbed it into their strikes and use it to banish demons from Earth.**_

Setsuna swallows nervously, thinking of the implications.

_Will that work on me?_

_**I have no idea. But don't find out.**_

Easier said than done, but Mana isn't the type to take complaints well.

_**Setsuna, one more thing. When you come back and open the door to the apartment, clench your jaw.**_

_Okay, but why?_

_**I'm going to punch you in the face.**_

That sentence effectively cutting off their conversation, Setsuna wipes the slightly sweaty card on her cargo shorts and puts it back in her pocket.

She looks up at the archway and ascends the stairs, keeping a wary eye on the paper tag at the top.

_But it's just one. Maybe I can just walk around it – oh._

On the second to last stair she gets a good view of the walkway leading up the main building. There's an archway every twenty feet or so, each one covered in multiple charms. To make matters worse, the path is hedged on either side by dense underbrush, and the rest of her group is out of sight. Setsuna considers using her card to ask Asuna to rejoin her, but can't think of a good enough excuse as to why she'd have to come back. Setsuna wishes, not for the first time, that she could just use her wings. It would be way too easy to just fly over all of this.

But being trapped on the ground, all she can do is sigh and jump into the thick foliage on the side of the path. Deciding it would be bad if somebody caught her doing this, she goes a bit deeper into the forest, but manages to maintain a line of sight on the walkway. Only when the archways end and she can safely step onto the packed dirt in front of the complex does she emerge from the forest.

"Setsuna!"

Asuna is waving at her, standing in front of the doorway of a large wooden building.

"What were you doing?" She asks when Setsuna has caught up to them. They all eye her scratched up legs and muddy shoes curiously.

"I got lost."

"…But the path was straight…"

"Nothing wrong with doing some exploring, right, Setsuna?" Konoka smiles at her, and Asuna looks between the two of them.

_Setsuna's a freakin' weirdo and Konoka's too nice to care. Maybe they _are _good for each other._

They're all, thankfully, distracted from Setsuna's misadventure by the sound of a sliding door. They simultaneously turn to face the person who'd opened it, and a woman steps out with poise and grace that's obviously been perfected by years of combat. Even by the simple act of opening the door it's easy to see this woman wastes no energy with unnecessary movement. Perhaps the most conspicuous thing about her, however, is the giant orange bird perched on her shoulder.

"I'm sorry to keep you waiting, Konoka Ojou-sama."

Her voice is silky and accented, and when she goes to take a bow her black, waist-long hair falls over one shoulder and catches the light.

To put it bluntly: she's absolutely beautiful.

"No worries, Tsuruko – um, Tsuruko-_san_," Konoka tries out the suffix, "And you can just call me Konoka."

"I see you're just as kind as your father, Konoka," the woman says after she's righted herself and brushed the hair out of her face, "And it looks like that compassion has earned you quite a few friends. Who might you all be?"

"Oh, I'm sorry, I forgot to introduce everyone. This is Ayaka, a business partner and friend, and her personal secretary Asuna. They were nice enough to bring me here since I didn't know the way."

Tsuruko smiles at both of them and bows, but when she stands up again her eyes linger on Setsuna. It's only a slight change in facial expression, but Setsuna can see the smile fade just a bit. She fidgets uncomfortably under the gaze.

"And who might you be?"

"This is Setsuna, a close friend of mine," Konoka offers, glancing back and forth between the two women.

"Setsuna, it's a pleasure to meet you," Tsuruko bows, "And excuse me for being so blunt, but what happened to your legs?"

"I took a bit of a round-about way."

Tsuruko's eyes narrow slightly, and Setsuna can already tell this isn't going to go well.

"The path didn't suit you, I suppose?"

Setsuna, not having an answer for that, stays silent. There's a drawn out moment of tension, and she can feel her heartbeat hammering inside her chest nervously. Finally, Tsuruko smiles at her.

"I'm sorry," she laughs, "I didn't mean to make you uncomfortable. People skills have never been my forte."

"No problem," Setsuna forces a smile and keeps her hands in her pockets to hide the shaking.

"So, Konoka," Tsuruko turns to the girl, "I understand Eishun-sama has a letter for me?"

"Oh, right!" Konoka fumbles for the letter in her pocket before handing it over.

Tsuruko neatly opens the envelope and pulls out a single sheet of paper. Her eyes scan the letter, and her brow furrows as she reaches the bottom of the text. After a moment she tucks the paper inside her red and white robe.

"Thank you for the speedy delivery, Konoka. That certainly explained some things."

"Did it really? Dad's so concerned with keeping up appearances, I kind of thought it was just a formality," she puts her hand behind her head and laughs. Tsuruko catches the action as one of Eishun's mannerisms and smiles fondly at Konoka.

"My, you certainly do take after your parents."

Konoka's eyes widen curiously at the plural.

"You knew my mom?"

"I met her a few times, yes. She used to visit here often when your father lived in Kyoto."

"_Really?_" Konoka exclaims excitedly, all lit-up like an adorable Christmas tree. "Was mom a swordsman too?"

"Not quite. She had more of an interest in what you might call 'divination.' Spiritual energy and fortune-telling. That sort of thing."

_I wonder if that has anything to do with why Konoka's so important_, Setsuna wonders passively. She might ask Asuna later, but at the moment she's more than happy just to be out of the spotlight.

"She _did_ have a particular fondness for watching some of our students train, however. Would you like to go see?"

Konoka turns to the other three, eyes sparkling and smiling excitedly, "Can we?"

"Of course," Asuna and Ayaka both agree easily – who could say no to that face? Setsuna shrugs her agreement a bit less enthusiastically, and Tsuruko's eyes again linger on her for an extra moment.

Tsuruko and Konoka take the lead, with the younger girl animatedly asking questions about her parents. Ayaka trails slightly behind, trying to point out the stylistic nuances of the architecture around them. Unfortunately, her knowledge falls on deaf ears; Asuna clearly doesn't care very much.

Setsuna lags behind all of them. She tries to keep a lookout for any more of those weird tags, if only as a distraction to keep her calm. All she can do now is keep her cool and hope nobody remembers to mention to Tsuruko that she swordfights. It would be much, much better if she could avoid the whole situation.

In Hell she'd been forced to fight pretty frequently, but not the kind of fighting she'd be expected to perform here. Back home, if you can even call it that, she was thrown into a gladiator-style battle with little more than a crude metal pole, if she was lucky. Most of the time she went bare-handed. Not that it mattered anyway, since the fights were always rigged so the hundreds of spectators would be appeased, and nobody was interested in seeing her win. All of them showed up with the desire to see the "angel" get violently killed, and so that's what happened. Although, to be fair, she got pretty good at defending herself. Dodging became second nature. It drew out the fight, but at least she could avoid the most painful blows that way.

Only one time had been different. They'd dragged Setsuna into the ring and thrown her a scrap of iron, and she'd glanced across the arena to see her opponent: a muscular, ten-foot tall, beefy looking humanoid. Despite the hundreds of opponents she'd faced, she can still remember his spiraled horns and gray skin and yellow eyes. He was holding a club, and Setsuna had recoiled at that. Death blows from blunt weapons were usually worse than with something like a sword, and she kind of hoped he'd kill her with the dagger strapped to his belt instead.

The fight had gone as one would expect, with Setsuna getting the ever-living crap kicked out of her until she was basically a pile of jelly on in the dirt. Her right leg was broken at the knee and her left shoulder had been pulled out of its socket from when he'd swung her around – really nothing out of the norm.

But she remembers him because he'd picked her up by the arm, and the crowd had cheered at her battered body, and then he'd smiled at her – an ugly gash across his face – and sandwiched her between the wall and his body. He looked like he wanted to eat her, which wouldn't have been so far out of the question, but something about his mannerisms told Setsuna that's not what was going through his head.

Up until that point nobody had looked at her that way. Being an outcast of the lowest kind, a cursed and wretched being, touching her without the intention of inflicting a blow was unheard of. In terms of social standing it would effectively ruin your reputation, and some demons might even consider you to be similarly cursed.

But on this day, with the crowd cheering him on, this guy didn't seem to give a shit.

Setsuna had been hurt and physically abused since she could remember; she was hardly scared of it anymore. But this guy ran his sword up her ribs, slicing through skin and muscle and shirt, and Setsuna was used to pain but not to the potent combination of confusion and sheer, unadulterated _panic_. Even though she didn't understand why at the time, and still really doesn't, something told her this was a world of pain she wanted nothing to do with.

She'd thrashed so hard the guy dropped both her and his dagger, and Setsuna had grabbed the knife and jammed it right up into his face and through his skull.

It was the most satisfying four seconds of her life.

(Nobody tried anything of that sort afterwards, but the torture she endured for winning the battle ensured she'd never do it again).

Her training with Asuna had been a lot more civil, although still barbaric by normal terms. The good news is that she'd actually learned how to use her weapons _properly_. Thankfully, she'd been given a sword, so at least she has some experience, but not nearly enough to match the discipline and control of these people, who spend a huge chunk of their lifetime practicing. For them, the sword is hardly a weapon anymore; it's more like an extension of their own arm.

That fact becomes all too evident when they're standing at the edge of a sparring zone. They watch as two men duke it out in a swordfight of near-choreographed grace.

"Wow," Ayaka murmurs, "I have some experience with martial arts, but this is just amazing."

"Don't discredit yourself for your hard work. These boys have all but dedicated their lives to perfecting the art," Tsuruko assures her.

One of them manages to get the upper hand. He knocks the other man to the ground with an elbow to the stomach and points his sword at the winded man's throat. After a moment he reaches down and helps him up, and they both bow politely.

"That's damn impressive," Asuna echoes Ayaka's sentiment, though a lot less gracefully. "But! I bet Setsuna here could take 'em, right, Setsuna?"

"Oh?" Tsuruko remarks curiously, a faint smile on her face. "Setsuna, you're familiar with the sword?"

"Not really. I just did a little bit of training when I was younger, but I'm sure I'm not as good as your students."

"Nah!" Asuna dismisses her statement, "You're plenty good enough! You should've seen her back in high school. She was like a freakin' demon when she had her sword."

"You don't say." Tsuruko gives her that same scrutinizing look, and Setsuna laughs uneasily.

"She – she's exaggerating, of course. Konoka, don't we have to, um, you know, go back now?"

Konoka once again looks between the two women. She's not really sure what to make of the situation, but Setsuna's discomfort is glaringly obvious.

"Yeah, I guess we should head back to the hotel –"

"Not so fast! Didn't you say you wanted to see Setsuna's awesome skills?" Asuna shouts, interrupting with great enthusiasm. "Is there someone she can fight?" The redhead looks at Tsuruko for approval, and Setsuna's about ten seconds from planting her face in the nearest tree just to get out of this predicament and Asuna's horrendously bad timing.

"Actually, I can think of quite a few students who haven't had their lesson today, Setsuna. Just a friendly duel, of course. I'm sure you wouldn't disagree to that, right?"

She's about to do just that, of course, but glancing at Tsuruko she realizes that might be a bad idea. The woman is obviously waiting for her to protest. Setsuna knows she hasn't done anything hopelessly obvious that points to her otherworldly nature, but at the same time, there's a clear challenge in the other woman's eyes. It's as if Tsuruko's waiting for one more shred of evidence against her, and with that intense stare focused on her, saying no would pretty much be a confession. And considering Tsuruko's ties to Konoka's father, that's the last thing she needs.

At the same time though, saying yes and losing would be far worse, and the chances of that are pretty high.

Asuna nudges her in the ribs, giving her a pointed look, and Setsuna knows that the redhead is one more person she'd have to deal with if she refuses.

"That's fine with me," she finally concedes, "But I'm a bit out of practice –"

"Psh, quit being all humble about it! She can take on your tough guys just fine," Asuna boasts second-handedly.

"Is that so? Well, then, I know just the person for you. Reiji!" One of the men turns his head and bows to Tsuruko in response. "Go tell Tsukuyomi her suspension is being lifted for the day."

Reiji hesitates for a moment, and he shares a worried glance with his training partner.

"Tsuruko-sama, are you sure that's –"

She gives him a look of clear authority, and he stutters an apology and hurries off.

"They're not going to fight with real swords, are they?" Konoka chimes in worriedly, and Tsuruko smiles at her.

"Of course not. We don't want anyone getting injured, and at the moment, Tsukuyomi is banned from using sharpened weapons."

"Why is that?"

"Mm, well, she got a little sword happy with one of her opponents last month and nearly cut his arm off. She's very skilled," Tsuruko adds, as if that makes it any better. Konoka pales a little bit at the thought.

"Are you sure this is a good idea?"

"If it makes Setsuna here uncomfortable for some reason or another, then I can call it off…?"

She gives Setsuna a meaningful look.

"I'll be fine," she lies, trying to keep a straight face.

"You must have quite the warrior's spirit to be so brave. There are wooden training swords in the weapons rack at the edge of the ring. Go ahead and pick one, Tsukuyomi will be here shortly."

Setsuna nods and steps away from the group, but not without a nervous glance at Asuna. The redhead smiles and leans over to her, whispering in her ear, "This is gonna be great! You're totally going to kick her ass, and it'll make a great impression on Konoka. Am I a good friend or what?"

Setsuna opts for the "or what," but Asuna doesn't seem to think much of her tired sigh. She walks to the far end of the arena and grabs a sword of decent length and waits.

_Someone, somewhere must be laughing at me_, she thinks bitterly. This is just a parody of her forced battles in Hell, and she tries to remind herself that her goal here isn't to just avoid being in pain. She actually has to win, or at least dodge every blow.

Resigned to her fate, Setsuna looks over at her supposed friends and wonders if this is the last time she's going to see them. She makes eye contact with Asuna, who's mouthing _"you're welcome"_ at her.

No, really, someone, somewhere, is laughing at her.

Heaving another tired sigh, she turns back around only to come face to face with blond bangs. She has to look down quite a bit to make eye contact with this girl, whose certainly the first person Setsuna has officially met on Earth who's shorter than her.

"Um, hi," Setsuna tries, not quite sure how to interpret this situation.

"Hello, Senpai," the younger girl bows and rights herself quickly, pushing her glasses back up her nose. "I'm Tsukuyomi. I was told we're going to duel?"

_This_ is Tsukuyomi? The fighter who almost cut somebody into two pieces? It's hard to believe this girl, with her impractically long blond hair and her glasses, can even swing a sword at all. The pink shorts and the white t-shirt with the cartoon bunny on it don't help either.

"I guess we are. I'm Setsuna," she tries to imitate the bow. Tsukuyomi maintains that guileless smile as she picks a shorter sword out of the rack. Without further introductions they walk to the center of the ring and stand opposite each other.

"Is that really the girl?" She hears Konoka ask quietly. Tsuruko hums a yes.

"She may look harmless, but don't underestimate her."

Setsuna's eyes snap back front and center just in time to see Tsukuyomi's smile grow just a bit. It doesn't look quite as innocent anymore.

She swallows nervously, thankful that the sword's handle is wrapped to prevent her sweating palms from losing their grip.

"Are you ready, Senpai?"

"Y – yes –"

The word is barely out of her mouth before Tsukuyomi lunges, striking brutally with a forward slash. Stumbling just a bit, Setsuna manages to parry the blow just in time. The shockwaves reverberate all the way up her arms, and if she was apprehensive before, she's plain shaking now.

Tsukuyomi doesn't let up, swinging her weapon quickly and efficiently in a flurry of strikes that are impossibly fast for the weight of her sword. Setsuna dodges two and parries a third, once again feeling her forearm go slightly numb. The fourth blow comes from above her, and she rolls to the side to avoid getting her skull caved in. The blonde steps back then, waiting for her to stand.

"C'mon, Setsuna! You can do better than that!" She hears Asuna yell, followed by Ayaka's quick reprimand.

"This isn't a football game, you monkey. Quit shouting."

Standing up, Setsuna takes a second to breathe deeply. Asuna's right. She _can_ do better than this because she _has_ to do better than this. If all she does is dodge she'll tire herself out eventually. She needs to make a decisive blow.

Setsuna readies herself with a little more confidence this time, trying to remember all her training and experience.

Tsukuyomi appears pleased with this development, and she goes to strike again only to have Setsuna come at her instead. The blonde easily parries two of her strikes – _left, right_ – but she doesn't expect Setsuna to draw her elbow back from the swing and into her abdomen. With an _oomf_, Tsukuyomi bends slightly and jumps back, holding her stomach.

The smile is definitely _not_ innocent anymore.

"Good move, Senpai. I was beginning to think this challenge was a dud. I'm glad it's not though," she giggles girlishly, tossing her hair over her shoulder, "I prefer strong women."

Setsuna doesn't have very long to dwell on that statement. Their swords crash into each other, meeting in the middle, and both draw back and swing again.

_Clack!_

Tsukuyomi ducks back to avoid an upward swing and lets herself hit the dirt, swinging out her leg to catch Setsuna at the ankles. Setsuna, not prepared for that, falls onto her butt and looks up to see Tsukuyomi already on her feet and jumping at her. More out of reflex than skill, Setsuna brings her knee up and juts out her foot at the last second, this time catching Tsukuyomi square in the chin. The blonde goes flying back and Setsuna scrambles to her feet.

She thinks for a moment that she overdid it, but to her surprise Tsukuyomi just laughs from her place on the floor. She's still giggling a bit when she's on her feet again, and she spits blood on the ground.

The blond looks up – still smiling. Except now half her teeth are dyed red and there's blood trailing down her chin, staining her white bunny shirt.

"_Oooh_," she practically moans, "I like you."

_Can this girl get any creepier!?_

They lock into combat again, and the three spectators look at each other uneasily. Even Tsuruko is beginning to look a bit uncomfortable by her student's, um, _enthusiasm_.

Against her will, Setsuna finds herself on the defensive again. Tsukuyomi's swings are quick and backed by a strength you wouldn't expect her to have, and the longer it goes on, the more Setsuna can feel her body grow tired. She's not as used to this formal style of fighting as Tsukuyomi is, and she hasn't done any physical training for quite some time.

_I have to finish this soon, or it's not going to end well_.

Fueled by that thought, Setsuna knows she has to catch the other girl off guard. She allows herself to be pushed back until she's sure Tsukuyomi thinks she has the advantage. When the blonde goes for a body strike, however, Setsuna puts all her effort into a single upward blow – not a parry, but rather a test of strength. Taken by surprise, Tsukuyomi loses her grip and her sword flies straight up into the air.

Setsuna sighs in relief, but quickly changes her attitude. The sword comes back down and Tsukuyomi catches it by the wooden blade and swings the handle viciously into Setsuna's sternum, knocking the wind out of her. She falls back, unable to breathe, and all of a sudden Tsukuyomi's on top of her.

Blood drips down from her mouth and onto Setsuna's cheek.

_Okay, she _can _get creepier._

"Don't worry, Senpai," she says in a mockery of a soothing tone, "I didn't use any chi with that blow."

"I – I don't know what you're talking about," Setsuna wheezes despite her racing heartbeat and struggling lungs.

"I think you do," she giggles.

_How the hell could she know?_

She doesn't wonder for long. A more pressing matter interrupts her worry.

Tsukuyomi's outright grinning at her now, and her eyes are narrowed like a predator staring down prey.

"I'm not going to seal you away though. I'd _much_ rather play with you myself."

Setsuna's not quite sure what to make of that, but then she sees Tsukuyomi's left hand reach between them and brandish something metal, and shiny, and _sharp_. If her head had been a bit clearer she might've wondered where the girl had been keeping it – strapped to her thigh, maybe? (One can only hope.)

There's a panicked, "Hey, wait –" from somewhere across the arena. All three spectators are on edge now, and Konoka turns to Tsuruko in a mix of anger and distress.

"I thought you said she wasn't allowed to use sharp weapons!"

"She's not," Tsuruko says, voice hard, and strides quickly forward to get between the two. Konoka, frustrated and worried, runs ahead of her. She doesn't care if she doesn't have training. As long as she gets there before anything happens –

Too late, though.

Tsukuyomi puts the edge of her dagger against the side of Setsuna's torso and carelessly guides it upward, _slicing through skin and muscle and shirt, _and even though Setsuna's felt this undeniable panic before it doesn't make her reaction any less dramatic.

Setsuna shoves outward blindly. She feels the dagger slice deeply into her upper arm but doesn't care, and Tsukuyomi falls backwards and then Setsuna's taking her dagger, blinded with instinctual rage and nearly hysterical, and trying her damndest to lodge it in the other girl's chest.

Startled by the sudden power change, Tsukuyomi can only roll to the side and watch as the dagger implants neatly in the dirt she'd been laying on just a second ago. Setsuna lunges at her in a repeat motion and the blonde doesn't have time to roll out of the way. Instead she grabs the other girl's forearm, stopping the blade from entering her jugular by a mere inch.

Setsuna can feel the blood dripping down to her elbow and into the dirt, and it's already drenched her shirt from where Tsukuyomi had cut her down the side. It's in the blonde's mouth, soaked into the ground, on the edge of the blade, and for a moment that's all she notices. Then two pairs of feet pause in her peripheral vision, probably wondering how to intervene without getting cut to pieces.

She doesn't care about any of that, though.

All she knows is her own emotion – it's hard to pinpoint; rage, sadness, fear?

Certainly bloodlust.

"I should kill you," she hisses at Tsukuyomi, whose expression is strained but cheery as ever. Despite her statement the knife doesn't get any closer, and the blonde manages to shove Setsuna's arm to the side without much more effort.

"Probably," she agrees light-heartedly. The pairs of feet have increased and come closer, and Setsuna knows they're all waiting for a safe moment to haul the two of them apart. Setsuna eases off just enough to let the other girl sit up halfway, although she doesn't loosen her grip on the dagger.

They stare at each other.

"Are you sure you don't want to have a little more fun while you're here?" Tsukuyomi asks, voice dripping with innuendo.

"No thank you," is Setsuna's far more straight-forward reply. Tsukuyomi sighs forlornly and stands up, offering a hand to the other girl.

"Well, I certainly had a good time."

Setsuna thinks about that. It felt pretty damn good to get so angry.

"Me too," she agrees, and they both shake hands just as Tsuruko reaches out to drag the blonde away. In the midst of several harsh reprimands Tsukuyomi turns back to her.

"I'm sure I'll see you again soon, Senpai!"

The four left standing together can practically see the little heart symbol at the end of her statement. Tsuruko yanks her back around by the ear and calls out a "please excuse me for a moment" as she disappears behind some of the dormitories, blonde luggage in tow.

Setsuna glances down at her ruined clothing and then back up to meet Konoka's stare. She's eyeing the blood, not a little queasily, and shakily takes off her jacket.

"Here," she offers, holding out the garment, "Until we get to the hospital."

"Thank you, but I'm fine. I'll just get it dirty."

"Jeez, just take it," Asuna grumbles. She's not quite as disturbed as Konoka, but she's still a little disconcerted over what she'd just seen. "You're half-naked, you know."

_Oh, right_.

Her shirt's been cut completely in half, and her bra is held together by nothing but a small strip of elastic that Tsukuyomi's dagger had somehow missed. She turns away from them and discards the bloody scrap of shirt before pulling the jacket on.

"Setsuna, shouldn't we be taking you to the hospital?" Ayaka asks unsurely. "I can even have a helicopter come if you don't think you can make it back to the car –"

"Oh, um, no thank you. I don't like hospitals."

She'd had a particularly bad experience concerning surgical instruments once, and the thought of being around those tools again makes her uneasy. The other three women glance at each other, obviously doubtful.

There are a few more attempts, made mostly by Konoka and Ayaka, to goad Setsuna into going to the hospital. When it's clear they're not going to get a yes out of her they let it drop, and with a significantly more awkward goodbye than hello, Tsuruko hands a letter to Konoka for her father and watches the four depart the compound together.

On the hike back Setsuna lets herself lag behind a bit with Asuna.

"Do you think I made an impression?" She asks hopefully.

Asuna remembers the vaguely nauseous expression on Konoka's face and tries not to smack the other girl for her obliviousness. She's about to ask Setsuna what kind of a question that is, but looking at the blood seeping through the borrowed jacket and remembering how she'd been the one to goad the girl into fighting, Asuna decides maybe now is not the time.

"Oh, I _know_ you did," she says honestly, and reminds herself to ask Setsuna what planet she's from some other time.

* * *

**XXX**

**A/N: **I decided to change things up and put the author's note at the end today. Exciting, right? And man, longer chapters are harder to edit. Hopefully there weren't too many mistakes!

Thanks to my reviewers once again. I'm hoping I don't lose interest in finishing this story (I tend to do that with multi-chaps. _Stagger_ was a miracle.) Reviews would certainly help in that department...! Insert shameless begging!

As far as chapter content goes, I'm crossing my fingers that everything made sense, or at least as much sense as was intended. Everything's supposed to be kind of mysterious at the moment, but because of that I worry the lack of context makes the bits of fact-dumping too hard to keep up with. Let me know if that's the case so I can better edit future chapters :)

Anyway, hope you all enjoyed! Please leave a review on the way out :D


	5. No Wifin' in Da Club

**A/N: **Thanks to those who reviewed! Your support means a lot to me, and I love you like I love ice-cream (this is more of a compliment than you will likely ever understand). I'm glad you all enjoy these versions of the characters; it's really a compliment to know they're still likeable, even if they're not exactly themselves, so to speak.

And I'll keep feedback about plot elements in mind. I _super_ appreciate it (hear that? Not even regular appreciate. _Super_ appreciate). I take those comments to heart and will continue to think about them as the story progresses, because they're awesome and make me think twice about what I'm writing, which is good. (Yeah, I'm looking at you Penshil. /love).

I will do my very bestest to continue this fic, and to get you guys to the gooey KonoSetsu center as soon as feasibly possible! Keeping in mind, of course, that I'm absolutely anal about build-up, and it's pretty damn hard to get this Setsuna to do… well, much of anything. But that's what we have alcohol for! Which leads me to my next point:

I have no excuses for the very silly and very cliché events of this chapter. It's life on Earth! "Everyone" does this at least once in their life, right? (Besides, there's nothing like doing stupid shit together to bring people closer…!)

And yes, I did (kind of) name the three men after the _Jersey's Shore_ people. And no, not all men in this story will be douchebags.

Happy reading! :D

* * *

**XXX**

Setsuna had mostly stopped bleeding by the time they'd reached the car. Konoka was thankful for that, at least, since the sight of so much of it made her a bit sick. She'd tried repeatedly to tell Setsuna she needed stitches, but Setsuna's an adult, and Konoka stopped trying to convince her after several polite "no thank you"s. How anyone could be so level-headed after that is beyond her. Legitimate martial art or not, that sword fight had been by far the most violent thing she'd ever witnessed in real life.

_She's certainly weird, _Konoka muses as she turns the hot water on for the shower. She realizes it's a bit belated to ask herself whether or not travelling with a complete stranger was a good idea. _I probably should've asked myself that question before we left.._.

But Setsuna really doesn't seem dangerous, or threatening, or anything like that. And she hardly seems like the type to rob Konoka in her sleep – but it's not like she really knows for sure. _Aren't psychopaths supposed to be really good at charming you into thinking they're trustworthy?_

She considers that briefly as she strips off her clothes, but by the time she's stepped into the shower she passes it off as paranoia. Setsuna isn't really charming, per se. In fact, most people would probably find her apathetic nature off-putting. Konoka is a firm believer in giving people chances though, and really she's just happy to finally have someone she can call a friend, even if it's only by name right now.

It's pretty much a first for her. Her mother died when she was five or so, and after that her father had hardly let her out of his sight. Konoka was home-schooled until she'd been allowed to go off to college by herself, but even then, he hadn't let her apply anywhere further than a couple of states away. She knows her dad is just protective because he loves her, and because he'd already lost his wife, but sometimes Konoka thinks about her past and can't help being frustrated with him. His insistence on keeping her caged up had sabotaged any opportunity of making friends. Who wants to hang out with someone who, at seventeen, still has to ask their father for permission to even leave the house? The answer was usually no, too, or more like "are you sure? You have exams coming up…"

She can't blame it all on him, though, and she doesn't really. Besides her father, people had shied away from her on many occasions because of her status, and it was especially difficult since she wasn't forced to be around thousands of other teenagers for half the day like most school-aged kids.

Part of her thought she'd be able to fix that when she went to college, and for a while she'd forced herself to talk to people and put herself out there. It almost seemed to work, but no one appeared to be interested in much except homework, keg parties, and sex. Despite her lack of interest in the latter two things, she'd given it a try anyway. But several drunken escapades and overly-assertive men later, she'd all but given up and resigned herself to studying. She'd done well, but graduating eighth in your class with a business degree from an Ivy League university is a lot less satisfying when you don't have any good memories to go along with it.

Then she'd been shoved into working right away, not needing a master's degree with her dad being who he is, and nobody wants to hang out with the woman who has the power to fire you. Despite all her acts of kindness and her openly compassionate nature, things always seemed to get in the way of her interacting with people her age.

Maybe that's why she and Setsuna have gotten along thus far. Konoka doesn't mind people being weird or awkward, so far as she can tell, and Setsuna either doesn't notice or doesn't mind all of Konoka's eccentricities: her status and overly-protective father, her lack of other friends, her weird interests and the sometimes strange way in which she conducts herself – none of it seems to matter. She's certainly grateful for that.

It's hard to tell if Setsuna feels the same way; the girl isn't exactly easy to read. _Probably because I don't know her,_ Konoka concedes once again. _So we'll just have to change that_.

Optimistic as usual, the brunette hops out of the shower and reminds herself that she's probably going to have to be the assertive one here. She leans over the bathtub to ring the water out of her hair before wrapping up in a towel.

The hotel they're staying in is pretty modest considering her wealth. There's only one large room with a desk, a TV, two dressers plus a closet, and two beds. She finds Setsuna lounging in one and flipping through the channels, although most of them are in Japanese.

"How are your injuries?" Konoka asks from halfway in the closet, rooting around for something comfortable to wear and finally downgrading her expectations to pajamas. After the fiasco yesterday they'd come to the hotel and Konoka had torn her luggage apart to find the first aid kit (_the one time dad's craziness actually came in handy_). Now, however, her clothes are pretty much dumped in a heap.

"Good, actually. Almost healed."

Konoka steps fully into the closet to throw her pajamas on and pokes her head out from between the doors.

"You mean, like, they're healing nicely, or…?"

Setsuna lifts up the sleeve of her shirt to examine the gash near her shoulder.

"They're almost gone."

_That's impossible_.

Adjusting the tie on her pants, Konoka approaches the bed and runs her hand over the spot where the gash is. Or _used_ to be, anyway. _That's so weird_. Konoka lifts Setsuna's shirt to check her ribs. _They looked so bad yesterday…_

She would know; she'd been the one to wrap them up, after all.

"Is it normal for you to bleed so much when you get injured? I mean, these must've been shallower than I thought if you healed so fast, but that was a lot of blood."

Setsuna watches the other woman undo the bandages around her torso. Where there had been a huge, jagged line yesterday, there's now just a narrow streak of red, congealed blood.

"The last time I was injured this badly –" Setsuna pauses. The last time she was injured like this she'd been killed… "Yes, this is normal," she decides to say instead.

But Konoka is still looking at her funny.

"Do you get hurt like this often?"

"I get beat up a lot."

_What? What does that even –_ _who _is_ this girl? And to say that with such a straight face is…_

"Um. I think I need an explanation for that."

"Oh," Setsuna pauses, seeming to consider that. "…I'd rather not talk about it, if that's okay."

"…You're not a hit man, are you? Or part of the CIA, or the mafia, or – please don't tell me you deal drugs, because –"

"No," Setsuna shakes her head, calm as ever, "I'm not any of those things. I'm just frequently dragged into violent altercations."

Konoka narrows her eyes and leans forward – _is she lying? _– and her hand puts a little too much pressure on the still healing wound. She sees Setsuna flinch, but instead of moving away, the girl simply picks up Konoka's hand and puts it on the other side of her stomach.

"Oh, I'm sorry, I can move –"

"If you like," Setsuna shrugs, "But you're really warm. It feels nice."

"…"

They make eye contact until Setsuna looks away to grab the remote and change the channel. Konoka stands there, both hands still on her friend's torso, and tries to decide whether this is weird or not. The thought process ends with the very unsatisfying realization that _I have no idea what the hell is going on_.

Part of her wants to run away from this very uncomfortable situation, but she'd already promised herself to make an effort. It's pretty obvious that Setsuna's about ten levels more clueless than she is, which doesn't help much.

_What do people usually do together…?_

She remembers her college days and considers the idea. It's been a long time since she went out to any kind of club or party, and the plane ride was the first time in two years she'd gotten drunk. Far more pleasant, though. Her last drunken adventure involved a bad date and box wine.

_Yep, that's pretty sad_.

"Hey, Setsuna, since you're feeling better, what do you say we go out?"

"Isn't it getting late?"

"It's only nine, and we've been inside all day. Or did you want to sleep soon?"

"That's alright, we can go," Setsuna turns off the TV, signaling her compliance, "I don't really sleep."

"Ah, you have a hard time getting to bed?"

"No, I just…. Don't really sleep."

Konoka's sure that was an attempt to reassure her, but for the sake of their friendship she's going to ignore that claim for now. There've been enough vague and confusing statements for one day.

"Alright then, let me call up Ayaka. She might know a good place around here."

Konoka goes for her cell phone and Setsuna gets up to dig through the dresser. She gives up after a moment though, realizing that she doesn't really know what Konoka means by _going out_.

_Does she mean literally going outside? Or, maybe, going out to a store. But most things are probably closed by now, so…_

"Hey! Ayaka, how are you doing…? I'm fine; Setsuna and I have just been cooped up all day. I was wondering if you knew any place to go out… nah, not that fancy, just like a club or something…"

_Ohhh. That kind._

"Which district…? Like, near the sushi restaurant…? Oh, I think I get it. I'll grab a cab or something just to make sure… Yeah," she laughs, "We could use one after yesterday… Yeah, just let me know when it's rescheduled. Like on Monday or Tuesday, or… okay, just text me… Don't worry, I'll be careful… See you then!"

She hangs up and types something into her phone.

"Ayaka said she doesn't usually go to regular clubs and stuff, but apparently there's a strip with a lot of night life around where we went to lunch yesterday. Are you up for finding one?"

"Okay," Setsuna agrees, "What should I wear?"

"Usual club wear," Konoka says, once again halfway in the closet. _I really need to fold my clothes at some point…_

"I, um, don't know if I have anything like that."

Konoka grabs a pair of jeans and finally finds a cute t-shirt, throwing both of them on the bed. She walks over to Setsuna's dresser and helps her go through her outfits, but the entirety of her wardrobe seems to be made of sweatpants, loose t-shirts, cargo shorts and work clothes.

"Huh. You don't go out much, I'm guessing?"

Setsuna shrugs.

"I've never been to a club before."

"_That_ I can understand," Konoka smiles sympathetically at her. "They're pretty crappy most of the time. But hey, I figure we may as well check it out since we're in a foreign country, right? You can borrow some of my clothes for tonight."

She returns to the closet-of-never-ending-mess and grabs her smallest pair of black jeans. After more searching she finds a dark-red, slim-fit shirt with gold beading in the shape of a smiley face.

_Maybe the expression will rub off on her,_ Konoka laughs to herself.

"Here you go," she tosses the clothing to Setsuna. "I'm going to run to the bathroom to change and do my make-up and stuff. Do you think you can call the cab? The number's already dialed in my phone."

"Sure."

Konoka closes the door behind her and Setsuna presses the "call" button.

"Moshi moshi?"

"Uh, hello?"

"Ah, sorry, no English."

_Click_.

Setsuna stares blankly at the phone and considers her options. Well, Mana had ingrained English into her brain; maybe she can speak Japanese as well? _How would I do that, though?_

She fiddles with the pactio card. Does she really want to get yelled at again…? But then, she still hasn't told Mana she hadn't been killed yesterday. Grabbing the card and double-checking the bathroom door is still closed, she touches it to her forehead resolutely.

_Hello?_

Pause.

_**I see you're alive.**_

_Yes. I got into a fight, but it turned out fine._

_**That's good news. Is that what you wanted to tell me?**_

_That, and also, I need to call a taxi, so I was wondering if I can speak Japanese._

_**No.**_

_Oh… Are you sure?_

Mana sighs. Talking to this girl is quite an experience.

_**I don't speak Japanese, which means you couldn't possibly speak Japanese. The only languages you know are English and daemonic.**_

_Do you think I should try daemonic?_

The gunman is about to explain to Setsuna why that's a terrible idea, but a tempting thought crosses her mind. Setsuna _has_ been causing an annoying amount of worries for her lately…

_**Is Konoka around?**_

_No, she's in another room._

Mana can't help the small smile from forming.

_**It's hard to understand over the phone. Why don't you try it on the concierge downstairs? Ask him if he can grab you a taxi.**_

_Okay, I will. Thanks._

They both put their cards away. Even for someone as experienced and battle-hardened as Mana, she can't help but find the situation humorous. She only wishes she could see the look on the poor guy's face…

Back in Japan, Setsuna changes into the clothes Konoka had given her and throws her hair up into a crooked ponytail before heading downstairs. The man standing at the counter is shorter and skinnier than the one that had greeted them on the first day.

"Um, hi," she says at first, wondering if maybe she could just get away with using English. To her dismay, the guy only gives her an apologetic look and a broken response.

"I call… ano… _other_ worker, yes?"

_Now or never_, Setsuna figures, and tries again in daemonic.

"There's no need. I was actually wondering if you could just call me a taxi. My friend and I are trying to get to a different district," she says.

Or that's what it sounds like to _her_.

To the concierge, this unassuming woman just opened her mouth and unleashed a fury of low-pitched, unearthly, pants-shitting _doom_ upon his ears in way of a demonic tongue reminiscent of your typical exorcist movie.

He stumbles backwards, eyes wide and mouth open in an expression of utter horror, and Setsuna watches the wet spot on his pants grow at an alarming rate.

_I guess that didn't work_.

She apologizes to the man – _in English_ – and heads back up the stairs without another word (thankfully).

"Hey," Konoka calls out to her when she gets back to the room, "Where'd you go?"

"The people on the phone didn't speak English. I went to try with the concierge downstairs, but he didn't speak English either."

"Ohhh, that's alright. I'll try a different number."

Setsuna leaves her to it and steps into the bathroom, once again putting the pactio card to her skin.

_It didn't work._

_**You don't say.**_

A moment, and then something occurs to Setsuna.

_Did you do that on purpose?_

_**Good job figuring it out. I recommend not doing that again, by the way, it won't turn out well.**_

_Yeah, I kind of figured._

_**That's impressive, for you.**_

Setsuna isn't sure if that's a compliment or not.

_**Anyway, good luck with whatever it is you're doing. **_

She sighs at her own gullibility. Stepping out of the bathroom, she finds Konoka at the tail end of another phone conversation.

"They said they'll be here in ten minutes," Konoka turns to her. She looks like she's going to say something else but gets distracted. "You know, I've seen you put up your hair like that before, and I have no idea how you get it to go that way."

"It just kind of does that; I'm not very good at doing it properly. Should I let it down?"

"Somehow it suits you," the brunette cocks her head slightly to the side, examining the mystical gravity-defying physics of Setsuna's hair.

"Thank you," the swordsman says, and realizes she should probably say something in return. At the same time, she has no idea how to give compliments, so she goes for a simple, "You look really good, by the way."

"Aww, thanks." Konoka turns to the mirror on the wall to check her reflection again. "I'm not used to putting on make-up; I was kind of worried I overdid it or something."

"Not at all."

Satisfied with her reflection, Konoka grabs some cash and shoves it into her clutch.

"I can pay for drinks tonight," she offers Setsuna, "You have your ID with you right?"

"Mostly."

Konoka turns to ask what she means and has to laugh at Setsuna trying to shove her passport in the pocket of her jeans.

"Yeah, those jeans kind of suck like that. I'll carry it for you if you don't have a purse."

"Thanks," she hands the passport over. _I miss pockets…_

They head downstairs and Setsuna glances at the concierge's desk as they pass by. She locks eyes with the guy she'd terrified earlier, and he quickly ducks beneath the desk. They get outside just as the cab is pulling up, and after a disjointed conversation with the driver and a fifteen minute car ride, they arrive without further trouble at the street Ayaka had mentioned.

The road is lined with bars and clubs, and they can hear the music even over the chattering of the crowded street. Signs they can't read are lit up in neon colors, and Setsuna looks around a bit dazedly. She's hardly ever out past eight o'clock or so back home.

"Kind of sensory overload, huh?" Konoka has to raise her voice a bit over the noise, and the other girl just nods while she scans the street with wide eyes.

Konoka follows suit, trying to decipher where the best place to go would be; not being able to read the signs makes it difficult though. She sees a large, youngish looking group stumble outside one of the buildings and grabs Setsuna's hand.

"Let's try this one," she points at the building and drags Setsuna across the street.

The quick, techno-pop bass of a remixed song is palpable in the air, and Setsuna stares skeptically at the entrance. _No choice now_. Opening the door, though, she nearly turns right back around. Konoka glances back at her worriedly, still holding the door.

"What's wrong?"

"That is… really loud."

"Oh, yeah," Konoka laughs, "Your ears will be ringing for a while, but you get used to it."

She turns back around and Setsuna follows with a resigned sigh. As if the ear-bleedingly loud music isn't enough, the strobe lights have her head spinning too. Konoka leads them up to the bar and orders two drinks, handing one to Setsuna, who takes it distractedly.

"Konoka?" She has to remind herself to shout over the music. "Is there a reason that guy is staring at me?"

"He probably wants to dance with you. Or have sex with you." Konoka pauses. "Probably both."

"Both those things seem like a bad idea," Setsuna mumbles, not loud enough for the other girl to hear. She locks eyes with him: a tall, skinny-muscular guy with his black hair spiked in haphazard fashion, and guesses if she were pretty much anybody else she'd probably find him attractive.

"You should dance with him!"

Setsuna looks around the dance floor. There are too many couples to count, and most of them seem to be doing the same thing: girls rubbing their rear-ends on the crotches of men, who all appear to be standing there and swinging their hips awkwardly while it happens.

_People do this for fun?_

"…Ah, I don't think so. I've never danced before."

Konoka pauses with a long island iced tea halfway to her lips.

"You've _never_ danced? _Ever_?"

…_Crap. If I keep saying stuff like that, she's probably not going to want to hang around me anymore…_

The worried expression on her face thankfully passes for embarrassment, and Konoka cringes at her own bluntness.

"Sorry, I didn't mean to embarrass you. Here," she finishes off her drink, orders another, and downs half of that too. "Liquid courage," she explains, "It's been a while since I've been out like this. I'll go dance; you can watch me until you get the hang of it. Then come join me, okay?"

"Thanks," Setsuna smiles, honestly grateful for the girl's understanding, and not for the first time. Konoka walks away and Setsuna is left with her drink, which she takes a sip of and nearly throws away. Not wanting to waste it though, she chugs the nasty liquid and points to a different drink on the menu, which thankfully has English translations on it. The bartender hands her a glass of something pink, and as she reaches out her hand to take it, she realizes her grip isn't quite as firm as it should be.

_What was in that first drink?_ She wonders, blinking rapidly to try and refocus her vision. It doesn't work. She wonders if ordering a second cocktail was a bad idea, but with the nasty aftertaste of the last one still in her mouth, she gratefully downs the juice-flavored cocktail.

And then another.

And then another.

_Woah_. The room sways as Setsuna goes to get up, and she quickly changes her course of action, plopping back down in her seat.

Konoka has, by now, charmed quite a few men. She waves over to one of them, but unlike many other couples here, she dances front-to-front with him. It's not nearly as awkward and ridiculous looking. Setsuna would even go as far as to say it looks good. Like, fun. Or attractive. Or something.

The guy wraps his arms around her waist, his hands landing on her butt. She indulges him for a second, grinding her pelvis against his before guiding his misplaced limbs somewhere a bit more appropriate. Konoka glances at Setsuna and pointedly rolls her eyes at the guy. Setsuna smiles back and shrugs.

_It's really kind of her to try and teach me_, Setsuna thinks happily. For her, she considers herself spoiled if she can be in the company of someone who isn't trying to kill her. But it's always hard with Asuna because of all the lies, and being around Mana just makes her feel incompetent most of the time. Konoka, on the other hand, has been nice to her since the first day, especially considering she'd had very little reason to do so. Despite Setsuna's awkwardness, and her strange behavior, and her lack of experience with almost _everything_, she hadn't had to cover any of that up around Konoka. The girl just plain accepted her despite the eccentricities, and even went out of her way to befriend her.

_She plays games with me, and paid for me to go across the world, and bandaged me even though it really wasn't that bad… and she bought me _pancakes_._ _No one's ever been that nice to me_.

Setsuna figures that maybe this is what friendship is supposed to be like, and the thrill of happiness makes her head spin even more.

(And if alcohol has anything to do with her sudden openness, she certainly doesn't notice.)

She watches Konoka politely step away from the guy she'd been dancing with. She walks back up the bar, orders herself another of those gross iced teas, and chugs it almost immediately.

"I forgot how fun this can be," Konoka shouts, handing over more cash for another drink. She'd been a bit unsure since most of her memories involving clubbing usually ended badly, but now that she's here, she's ready to get into the spirit of things. She finishes half her drink and knows she's on the high end of tipsy now, but she figures she owes herself some good drunken memories. Putting her glass down, she stands and nods back at the dance floor.

"I'm gonna go back out. Come join me soon, 'kay?"

"I will."

Konoka saunters back out and almost immediately there's a guy approaching her. Setsuna watches them dance for a few minutes. Her hand taps the beat of the music against her empty glass, and she watches Konoka move in time with each _clink_.

_I think I kind of understand how this works._ Whether or not she's ready to try it is another thing entirely, but she _did_ say she would. She gets up, ignoring the slight spin of the room, and dodges her way through throngs of people to get to her friend.

"You ready to try?" Konoka smiles at her, sidestepping the guy she'd been dancing with. He doesn't seem too hurt and goes to find another girl.

"I think so," Setsuna says with a bit more confidence than she feels.

"Here, give me your hand."

With their fingers laced Konoka leads the other girl through some simple motions first, keeping them both timed to the music. Setsuna copies her motions awkwardly at first, but despite her slightly addled brain, she manages to grasp the rhythm and creates her own pattern. _It's kind of like doing katas._

"See! You're a natural!"

_This is actually pretty fun_, Setsuna thinks, enjoying herself more than she thought she would've. It feels good to move so freely, to be able to shut out her anxiety over whether or not she's being normal. With the pounding music and the darkness, she doesn't have much to be worried about.

"What was that one thing you did with that guy a second ago? He seemed to really like it," Setsuna shouts over the music, feeling a bit braver now.

"You mean grinding?"

"I think so. How do you do it?"

Konoka considers that. They are friends, she supposes, and it's not like girl-friends don't dance like that sometimes. _I think, right…? Although it is kind of sexual_. But since Setsuna's asking her for lessons, more or less, that would make it okay, right? After all, they're not doing it _to be_ sexual, like the men she'd been dancing with. It'd be like teaching.

"If you don't want to do it with me that's okay," Setsuna notices the other girl's hesitation and tries to reassure Konoka the same way Konoka had done for her earlier.

"Well, it's not _you_," Konoka shouts back. It's not that she has an issue with _Setsuna_. She's a good friend to come out with her despite her obvious discomfort, and it's not like she's not good-looking or anything. Not that her attractiveness should be a deciding factor. Or a factor at all, for that matter.

Konoka shakes her head, laughing at her own paranoia. _It's just weird because I'm making it weird_.

"Just tell me if I make you uncomfortable, okay?" She finishes, and Setsuna nods at her, not really understanding. _Why would that make me uncomfortable?_

Reminding herself not to be weird about it, Konoka closes the gap between them until they're almost touching. She leans close to Setsuna's ear so she doesn't have to shout quite as much.

"The guy will usually put his hands here," she gestures to her waist, "Or on your butt, if he's feeling brave. Don't worry about that though. Other than that, you just kind of…" She trails off and presses the fronts of their bodies together, grinding her pelvis against Setsuna's with a decent amount of pressure.

It immediately becomes clear to Setsuna why this might make someone uncomfortable. It also becomes clear why people do it in the first place. For someone who's never had friendly, full-body contact – really not even a good hug – the sensation can only be described as _holy fucking crap_.

Setsuna can feel some sort of noise unintentionally creeping up her throat, and she bites her lip to swallow it back down. She has to remind herself that Konoka hadn't seemed to appreciate that guy's hands on her earlier, but her fingers twitch as she fights the reflexive urge to put her hands on the other girl's waist and bring her closer.

"Am I weirding you out?" Konoka asks, noticing the other girl's stiffness (pun intended?). Setsuna bites the side of her tongue. _Don't say anything stupid_.

"Not at all. I think I get it now."

"Oh, good, I was kind of worried since I've never danced with someone shorter than me," Konoka smiles at her. "Give it a try then, I'll tell you if you're doing it right."

Of course, Konoka's never been on the receiving end of this before, but she figures it must be pretty easy to tell if someone's doing it well despite the lack of boner. It takes Setsuna a second to regain her wits, and she counts the beat in her head until she has the rhythm down. Taking a breath and preparing herself, she copies Konoka's movements. It's a bit clumsy at first, but after a few seconds they manage to get it right.

Setsuna grits her teeth and tries not to be too obvious about the fact that she wants this to _never stop, ever, please_. Once again she's glad that it's dark except for the strobe lights, which do little to illuminate details. She keeps her hands close to her sides so they don't go wandering, but she's surprised to feel Konoka's hands on _her_ waist first.

And Konoka hadn't meant to, really, but she can understand why guys are so into this now. She's similarly glad for the lack of visibility; otherwise she'd be forced to notice that their faces are _very_ close together, and at that point she'd have to admit they should probably not be doing this.

Except now the thought's planted in her brain. To compensate, she leans forward more, putting the side of her head against Setsuna's so their faces aren't quite as close.

_It's only weird if you make it weird_, she reminds herself. But with the increase in contact and their new position, Setsuna can feel the other girl's breath – _I wonder why she's breathing so hard _– on her ear, and against that warmth Setsuna fails to resist putting her hands on the other girl this time.

Konoka feels the arms wrapping around her, pulling her closer and increasing the friction, and she can't help the visceral, full-body shudder that follows.

_Nope, this is definitely weird._

As calmly as possible, and maybe with a bit of regret, Konoka extracts herself from what she realizes is an extremely provocative position. Other people seemed to realize that as well, she notices, glancing around. She meets several pairs of eyes, mostly belonging to some very interested looking men.

"What are they staring at?"

Konoka turns her attention back to Setsuna, and seeing the girl's genuine confusion, sighs at her own thoughts. _Of course she didn't notice; because it was just in my head. …I really need to get laid._

"I wouldn't worry about it," she dismisses, not wanting to make it awkward by explaining, "I really need a drink. Do you wanna come with me, or are you going to show off your new skills?" She half-jokes.

"I'll give it a try then come join you in a bit."

"Sounds good," Konoka gives her a wave and heads back to the bar.

Setsuna sighs a bit dejectedly. _That felt really nice…_ and that's an understatement. She's still not sure if she wants to dance with other people, but she _does_ want to regain that feeling. And looking around, it's pretty obvious that there are more than enough willing participants. Several men are staring at her, looking increasingly curious after the show she'd unwittingly put on. A few of them look American – unsurprising since it's a touristy area – and one of them approaches her and gives her his best charming smile. She smiles back, being a bit more in the habit of it now, and with his lead she feels out the beat of the current song and dances.

It's still fun, but it's not like what she'd just done with Konoka. _Probably because we aren't really touching_, she figures, but the guy – who is blonde and significantly bigger than her, with a strong-jaw and broad shoulders – seems happy to remedy that.

Setsuna has to consciously tell herself to keep dancing at that point; it's tempting to just stand there and let him touch her. It's not exactly like with Konoka, but it feels just as good – just different. He's way bigger for one thing, and not as soft. And two, there's a lot more in his pants. Which isn't necessarily bad, Setsuna finds, really just wanting that same feeling she'd gotten earlier.

Somehow they've migrated from the center of the dance floor to the side furthest from the bar, but Setsuna only notices when her back touches something solid. The guy leans one hand against the wall behind her but doesn't stop dancing – and Setsuna's totally okay with that.

"I'm Mike," a masculine voice says in her ear, "My friends and I are staying in a pretty nice hotel a few blocks away. You wanna come home with me? I can show you a good time."

He gives her another winning smile and presses their bodies closer together so their chests are touching. Setsuna, sandwiched between a wall on one side and feelings of pure awesome on the other, doesn't really know or care what the hell is going on.

Thankfully for Setsuna, or at least for her virginity, Konoka has noticed by now that her friend appears to have disappeared. She puts down her drink and scans the dance floor, a bit worried, and spots Setsuna practically having sex with some guy in the back of the club.

_That can't be good_.

She hastily makes her way through the crowd and taps the guy on the shoulder.

"What's up?" He asks pleasantly after giving her the up-and-down.

"I think you have my friend pinned against the wall, and we're supposed to be heading back now."

He steps back, a bit confused, and Konoka seizes the moment to grab Setsuna by the hand and lead her away. She goes straight for the door, and the weather's gotten a lot chillier in the past couple of hours. The cold seems to knock some sense and soberness back into Setsuna.

"Um, is something wrong?" She asks when they're a decent distance away from the club.

"I was going to ask _you_. I mean, if you want to go home with that guy you _can_, I just had to be sure you weren't making a drunken mistake or getting taken advantage of."

Setsuna blushes, knowing that it was pretty much a combination of both.

"Yeah, actually, thank you."

"Don't worry about it, just be careful. And maybe you should stay away from grinding," she laughs, and Setsuna responds with an embarrassed smile that quickly drops at the sound of someone's voice.

"Hey, why'd you run off so quick?" Both women turn to see Mike approaching them in full-on swagger mode, a couple of the other American guys in the club tailing him. Konoka takes a brief look around. They've walked a sizeable ways from the door, and with it getting so late, there aren't as many people around. Of course, that's probably just her dad's over-protectiveness rubbing off on her, but it still makes her nervous.

"Sorry, but we both have work tomorrow, and it's getting late," she says, smiling politely. One of the men Mike walked up with, a slightly shorter guy with dark hair and big arms, looks skeptical though. He glances back and forth between the two women. Something seems to click for him, and he grins at them both.

"Ohh, wait, I totally get it. I thought you ladies were just putting on a show when you were dancing, but don't tell me you're actually together?"

It's Konoka that's blushing now. She averts her eyes and goes to say something, but Setsuna gets there first.

"Well, yeah," Setsuna says like it's obvious, and Konoka's about to question what she means, but realizes Setsuna's probably just doing it so these guys will leave them alone.

(She's not, of course. She thought he meant together as in proximity.)

Mike doesn't seem discouraged by this at all. In fact, he seems happy. With the brightness of the street lamps they can both see his eyes are bloodshot, and when he leans forward excitedly they can smell the booze.

"That's awesome. Then you can _both_ come home with me."

"Woah, woah," the third man, a skinnier guy with a dark tan and a goatee, interrupts. "We can share, can't we? I mean there're two of them."

"They're clearly a package deal, Paul, and I found 'em first. You and Ron," Mike gestures at big-arms guy, "Can go home and touch each other."

Paul rolls his eyes in response, and Konoka has, by now, had about enough of this.

"Listen, I'm sorry to disappoint you guys, but we're going _home_. Right now."

She grabs Setsuna's hand to lead her away, but she only takes two steps before meeting resistance. She looks back, confused, and finds Mike holding Setsuna's other arm by the wrist.

"Don't be such a fucking tease." His voice is a bit louder now. "You can't seriously dance with me like that and leave me hanging. You owe me."

"She doesn't owe you _anything_," Konoka half-yells back, narrowing her eyes at him. "I'm sorry if you were confused, but she doesn't want to go home with you." She looks at Setsuna for back-up.

"Right. Sorry if I mislead you," Setsuna offers, pulling her hand away from Mike's grasp. He and his friends make quick eye contact, all three of them looking fairly pissed off.

"Now hold on a second," Ron growls, reaching a hand out and grabbing Konoka by the upper arm.

Setsuna watches fear flicker across the brunette's face.

Konoka has done a lot for her in the past few days, she reminds herself. Even just now she'd stood up for Setsuna and tried to protect her, in a way, from getting hurt. It felt good to have Konoka stick up for her like that, and she remembers Evangeline's words about the golden rule. Not to mention, it wouldn't be good to let her charge get hurt. And besides all those reasons, she doesn't _want_ Konoka to get hurt.

So Setsuna gently extracts her right arm from Konoka's grasp, balls her hand into a fist, and delivers a swift uppercut to Ron's face.

He hadn't seen it coming, and his head snaps back with little resistance. His grip loosens and he falls backwards, hitting the ground with a thump. The other two men stare in shock, first at his unconscious body, then angrily at Setsuna.

"What the _fuck_," Mike snaps, stepping towards the two women menacingly. Setsuna steps in front of Konoka and pushes her away gently.

"Se – Setsuna, he's way bigger than you, you can't –"

Setsuna turns back to her with a consoling smile. "I'll be fine, I promise."

"Like hell you will!" Mike shouts.

He reaches out to grab her, expecting it to be easy without the element of surprise on her side. Unfortunately for him, she knocks his hand out of the way and punches him squarely in the stomach. He grunts in pain, but he's a big guy and can take a few hits. Setsuna makes a half circle around him so Konoka isn't next to them anymore.

That happens to make a perfect opening for Paul, though, and he goes to catch her from behind. Setsuna lets him just barely touch her shoulder before reaching back and catching hold of his hand. He'd made a lunge for her, and she uses his forward momentum to flip him over her back and directly into Mike, who happened to be mid-punch.

His fist strikes Paul's head, and the guy goes down and stays down. He groans a bit, and Mike glances uneasily at his two incapacitated companions.

By now a couple of bystanders have called the cops, and the sound of sirens pierces through the chatter and cries of encouragement. Glaring half-heartedly at the two women, Mike turns and makes a run for it.

Setsuna relaxes, letting her arms drop to her side. She turns around to face Konoka, who is looking at her with no small amount of awe.

"Okay, I think we can go now," Setsuna says, gesturing at the red and blue lights. Konoka glances uncomfortably at the two incapacitated men on the sidewalk.

"Shouldn't we stay and give a police report or something?"

"I don't think we'll have to. These other people don't look like they're leaving soon."

Attracted by the noise and excitement of the fight, several people have formed a small crowd around them. A few point to Setsuna and mutter to each other.

"Yeah, I guess you're right," Konoka agrees, mostly because she wants to get out of there.

They flag down a cab and get in, avoiding the stares of all the bystanders. Konoka sits quietly in the backseat with Setsuna, trying to piece together the events that'd just occurred. Most of it makes no sense to her – one minute they were being accosted by three men, and the next Setsuna had kicked the crap out of two of them. It doesn't make any sense that one girl could've done that, and she wonders once again who the hell Setsuna really is.

_It was still freaking awesome though_, Konoka thinks, smiling when she remembers the look on Mike's face before he ran off.

As soon as they get into their room, she opens up the mini-fridge and grabs two small bottles of liquor. She tosses one to Setsuna.

"Thanks," the girl catches it in one hand. She hadn't really planned on drinking more, still being a bit drunk, but she copies Konoka's actions anyway and unscrews the bottle. The brunette sits down next to her on the bed.

"I figured we could have a toast," Konoka explains, tapping her mini-bottle against Setsuna's, "To you, for saving me." She seems to have reclaimed her wits, and in her now stable but still drunken state of mind, she downs the clear liquid in one go. Setsuna follows suit, flinching at the taste.

"It was no big deal. You've helped me out a lot since we met."

"Hardly," Konoka waves off her thanks, seeming more interested in what had just happened. "How the hell did you do that, by the way? I mean, I know you can sword fight – you were really awesome at the Shinmeiryuu too, but that guy you flipped was _huge_. He was, like, six-foot-five or something."

He wasn't quite _that_ tall, but praise is a rare thing for Setsuna, so she doesn't correct the discrepancy.

"Experience, like I said. I get into a lot of fights and stuff."

"Yeah, but why?"

"I prefer not to talk about it, if you don't mind."

Konoka hums, remembering Setsuna had mentioned that earlier. She toys with the empty bottle in her hands momentarily. She hadn't been keeping track of how much Setsuna had drunk over the course of the evening, but it must've been just as much as she had – which was quite a bit, given her size and the fact that she doesn't go out very much. And if Setsuna doesn't go out at all, she's probably even drunker. Which makes her feat even more amazing, if anything.

There are quite a few more bottles left in the mini-fridge since they hadn't touched it until now. Konoka screws the cap back on her drink and gets up to root through the bar, tossing her last one in the trash. _This is kind of a cheap trick, but…_ Well, Setsuna doesn't seem too keen on talking to her while sober. Konoka tells herself that she's not being manipulative by trying to extract secrets from the other girl through alcohol. _I'm just… encouraging her._

Right. Encouraging.

But it's difficult to be friends with someone you hardly know, as she'd admitted to herself earlier. First of all, this is the second time in two days that Setsuna's gotten into a fight, and if she's a magnet for violence, Konoka certainly feels she has the right to know about it. Plus, every time she feels like she's starting to get a grasp on Setsuna's personality and way of thinking, the girl does something exceedingly strange. Like beating up drunkards.

Konoka's been getting far more questions than answers, so she tosses a bottle to Setsuna resolutely.

"Here, catch."

Setsuna goes to snag it out of the air like before, but her depth perception is a bit off now. She misses by half a second and the bottle hits her squarely in the chest.

"Getting kinda clumsy, eh?"

"Well, now I don't have to worry about weird guys, so I think it's okay."

They clink their bottles together again and down them, and Konoka gets up for a third round. And a fourth. And a fifth.

And then they're both staggeringly drunk, having had almost ten drinks each in the past three hours or so.

"Oh jeez," Setsuna mumbles, rubbing her eyes and trying to get the ceiling to stop spinning, "Why do people get this drunk?"

"It's fun. Or something."

_Not really_. But she hadn't wanted Setsuna to drink alone; that would just be unfair, considering her ulterior motives.

"Hey, Konoka," Setsuna turns on her side and pokes the girl next to her. They're both lying sideways on the bed with their feet dangling off one edge. "Are men usually like that?"

"Nah. Those other guys I danced with seemed pretty nice. The ones that were bothering us were just douchebags, and the club was kinda seedy…" she giggles, "That was probably a mistake."

"Ah."

Setsuna tries to turn back over, but her body seems extraordinarily heavy. Even lifting her head feels like a chore right now, so she resigns herself to her position and studies Konoka's face in profile. The brunette is drunkenly staring cross-eyed at the ceiling, but despite the silliness of the expression, the same appreciation she'd felt in the club comes back. The happiness makes a warm nest in her belly, and she smiles for seemingly no reason at all. She can kind of tell it's the alcohol now, but even knowing that doesn't make the feeling go away.

"Can I tell you somethin'?" Konoka asks. Her speech is slightly slurred, and she hardly feels like having a conversation anymore, but she had sensed the change in Setsuna's demeanor and decided to take hold of the opportunity.

"Sure."

"I'm really glad we're friends." She turns over on her side to face Setsuna. "And thank you again for rescuing me tonight, more or less. If you hadn't been there that could've gone a lot worse."

"It's – it's okay," Setsuna stammers and pulls away a little, trying and failing not to blush at the compliment. Konoka shakes her head at the other girl's dismissal.

"No, seriously, you were really awesome. I wish I knew more about you, and why you fight so well, but I know you don't really trust me with that stuff yet –"

"It's not that!" Setsuna lifts her head up with no small amount effort. "I just… don't really think, um…" She narrows her eyes in thought, trying to find the right words. "It's just kind of a long story."

"I'm here to listen, if you want to tell me."

Setsuna hesitates. Somewhere in the still reliable part of her mind, she knows any kind of explanation might be too weird for the other girl to understand – and that's only _if_ she can find a way to tell it without actually telling it. The less reliable part of her brain, however, is pretty much ready to spill the beans. She tries to decipher the driving force behind that, but can only narrow it down to the fact that, for one reason or another, she _wants_ Konoka to know. _…Being drunk is weird_.

"Okay," she says with a sigh, "But you have to promise you're not going to get scared or anything…"

"I promise," Konoka replies excitedly, despite that Setsuna's preface is rather foreboding.

"Okay, so… I already told you I grew up in an orphanage, right?"

"Right," Konoka nods, ignoring the way it makes her head spin.

"It was a pretty horrible place. The only times I got to go outside were to do chores, and it was really cramped inside the rooms, and really, _really_ hot."

"Where was it?"

"…Florida."

Setsuna makes a mental note of that so she doesn't get her places mixed up later. Konoka nods again, encouraging her to continue.

"I was really different from all the other kids, so I got picked on a lot. Even the caretakers and home-school teachers really hated me, and sometimes they would gang up and corner me just to beat me up."

"The teachers or the kids?"

"Both."

Konoka's eyes widen and she leans forward, entranced by the foreign and gruesome thought.

"What did they do to you?"

Setsuna tries to think of a reasonable human equivalent to what she'd experienced as a child in Hell.

"The teachers would make up excuses to punish me. Sometimes they'd lock me in a closet and leave me there for hours without food or anything, maybe even days. Other times they just hit me. I had a lot of broken bones from that."

More like _all_ her bones, up to dying sometimes. But she doesn't mention that, obviously.

"Oh my God, I'm so sorry," Konoka averts her eyes, less fascinated and more horrified now. Setsuna shrugs.

"It was a long time ago." Setsuna thinks to her TV soap opera education for inspiration, kind of having fun with her story now, and continues. "I got a public education for middle and high school, but everyone still seemed to hate me for some reason."

"Was it something you did?"

"No," she answers firmly, and Konoka watches a wave of intense anger flash across her friend's face. Setsuna doesn't have any delusions about it being her fault – it was just bad luck; a stupid twist of fate and some bad genes. For those simple, uncontrollable reasons, she'd spent her life miserable and abused. She clenches the empty liquor bottle in her hand until it breaks quietly, gouging her palm with sharp pieces of glass. The pain snaps her out of her thoughts and she doesn't mention it to Konoka.

"I guess it's because I was quiet or something. But people would always pick fights with me – shoving me into lockers, framing me for stuff. That kind of thing," she lies more easily now. She recalls her first experiences with the arena in Hell and squeezes the shards of glass in her hand, allowing the pain to help keep herself in check. "I got the crap kicked out of me the first few times. Broken bones, black eyes; but everyday I'd go back to the orphanage and no one would care. They'd tell me it was my fault and just do the same thing. Eventually, because of the frequency, I learned to fight back. I got pretty good at it after a while. That's how I was able to beat up those guys."

"That's crazy," Konoka whispers, trying to imagine growing up in that kind of pain. "When did it stop?"

The question almost makes Setsuna smile. It would've been nice to be able to give a real answer to that, to be able to name a time when she hadn't been in a state of constant suffering. That time doesn't exist though, or at least, not yet. Her only hope, marginal though it might be, comes with Konoka's death. She frowns at that.

"It didn't," she says finally.

"I'm… I'm really sorry, Setsuna," Konoka grabs the girl's hand, at a loss for words. She'd wanted to know about her friend's past, but she hadn't been expecting _this_. "Is that why you don't like hospitals? Because you had to go so much?"

"Yeah," Setsuna lies. "I didn't go too often, since nobody was able to pay for it. But when I _did,_ even the doctors didn't treat me well. I guess they figured since I always had physical injuries that I was picking fights myself, like I was a troublemaker or an instigator, or whatever you call it. They even refused to give me anesthesia after a while."

She doesn't feel bad about the lie. The truth is much worse, involving experiments and scalpels and surgery as entertainment… she shudders at the memory – one of her worst. Konoka squeezes her hand.

"I don't know what to say," Konoka says honestly. "I'm sorry I opened up all those memories for you. I just really wanted to know who you are, but I won't ask again if it's too hard to talk about it."

"No, it's okay," Setsuna tries to smile at her, knowing that's the right thing to do in this situation. "I've never really had anyone to listen to me. It feels good to talk about it."

"Well, _I'm_ here to listen," she insists gently, "Whenever you want. And I know there's nothing I can do or say to make your life any better, but –"

"That's not true. My life's been better since I met you," Setsuna says it without thinking, but as soon as it's out in the open, she realizes how true it is.

"Same here, you know," Konoka whispers, touched by the sincerity behind Setsuna's words. "My life's been a cakewalk compared to yours. I'm sorry if I seem really spoiled by complaining about not having friends and stuff…"

She kind of _does_, to Setsuna. It's not like Konoka complains often, but even just being the way she is – rich, surrounded by luxury, having a father – conjures no small amount of bitterness in Setsuna. It doesn't make her dislike the other girl though. She, of all people, knows you can't help what you were born into. She just has to remind herself sometimes.

"Don't be sorry. I don't know very many people, but I think loneliness must be just as hard for everyone. And I want to listen to you, too," Setsuna adds, once again remembering Evangeline's wise words.

"Thanks," Konoka gives her a genuine smile, but it falters quickly under the weight of their conversation. "I know it's kind of a lame offer, but is there anything I can do? To help you, I mean, either now or in the future."

Their hands are still clasped together comfortingly, and Setsuna can think of at least one thing. She averts her eyes and tucks her head down before she answers.

"Actually, I really liked dancing with you…"

Konoka can feel the blush spreading on her face and hesitates. She'd enjoyed it too, but at the same time, it'd also made her pretty uncomfortable. She doesn't want to do that again purely for physical gratification. That would be crossing a few too many lines.

_Again, I seriously need to get laid soon._

"What did you like about it?"

"Um, everything, I think. I haven't had much physical contact with people, so I'm not used to it, and it feels good…"

"Oh," Konoka sighs quietly, relieved, "We don't have to go dancing for that, Silly. We can just cuddle."

"Cuddle?" Setsuna looks up again curiously.

"Yeah. Hold on."

Konoka stands up woozily to turn off the lights. She climbs under the covers, right-way-up this time, and motions for Setsuna to join her.

"How's this?" She asks when they're situated. Being a bit shorter, Setsuna's head is against her chest, and one of her arms rests comfortably on Konoka's stomach.

"S'good…" Setsuna mumbles sleepily, and Konoka giggles at her impaired speech. The sound of her laughter is comforting now, especially accompanied by her rhythmic heartbeat. Setsuna cuddles closer, relishing the warmth and comfort.

They lie there together for an hour before Konoka's breathing evens out, signaling her descent into sleep. Setsuna struggles to stay awake, if only to enjoy this feeling a little longer. She knows this might be happening only because they're both drunk, and if this is the last time it's going to happen, she wants to enjoy it. The beating of Konoka's heart and the occasional sound of traffic from below is lulling though, and her eyes close of their own accord.

Setsuna can't help but think this is the most peaceful she's been in her entire existence. How has her life improved so much, and in so little time, since meeting this one girl?

The same one she has to effectively kill in order to escape the hellhole of her reality. Her _actual_ reality, not the pseudo one she has on Earth.

_When I have to do it, I will_, she reassures herself and shoves the thought out of her mind.

For now: sleep.

**XXX**

* * *

**A/N: **Yeah I know, super fluffy stuff. But they _are_ drunk, and lordy knows I've had enough of this IRL to know it actually happens. But! Enjoy it while it lasts! Most chapters won't be nearly this self-gratuitous, haha.

And I totally have never used drunken conversations to goad secrets out of people. Nope. Never.

…

Anyway, feel free to leave feedback on your way out! Reviews are much appreciated (and inspiring, /hinthint)!


	6. SSS: Sneaking, Stealing, and Sneezing

**SSS: Sneaking, Stealing, and Sneezing**

(Author's note at the bottom today!)

* * *

**XXX**

They spend the next day confined in their room and debilitated by crippling hangovers.

It's hard to tell if Setsuna wakes up because of the pounding headache, the nausea, or the sound of Konoka retching in the bathroom. She wants to call out and ask if she's okay, but opening her eyes causes a dizzying amount of pain, so she settles for trying to adjust to the amount of light in the room. It must be pretty early, judging from the weak sunlight passing through the window. They've probably been asleep for three hours or so, but being tired is the least worrying consequence of last night's drunkenness. The pain behind her eyes is far worse.

Just when she's finally feeling good enough to sit up, Konoka stumbles out of the bathroom and falls face-first on her bed. One of her hands goes up in a half-hearted wave, but there are no signs of life other than that one, not that either woman minds. They're both happy to sit quietly, and there's no bonding like bonding over extreme and superfluous pain.

A noise from Setsuna's bedside startles them both, and Konoka flinches at the volume. It sounds like two hundred decibels to her. She clamps her hands over her ears and mumbles, face still in the mattress, "Your phone is ringing."

Except it's _not_ Setsuna's phone. She roots around in the drawer of her nightstand and finds the source of the noise: her compact. She shoves it in her pocket and retreats to the bathroom, locking the door behind her.

"Hello?"

"Setsuna," Evangeline's replies through what sounds like a loudspeaker. She cringes at the volume and holds the little mirror further away from her, and Evangeline pauses. "What's wrong with you?"

"I had a lot to drink."

"You're hungover?" Evangeline raises an eyebrow at that. _Who knew she'd adjust that quickly_. And then another thought: _Actually, maybe getting drunk isn't the sign of a well-adjusted person._

"Yeah."

"Good to know you're having so much fun in the midst of saving all of our lives."

Setsuna sighs audibly. This wasn't what she was hoping to wake up to.

"Isn't it good that we're bonding?"

"You're right, I'm just giving you a hard time," the vampire smiles at her and Setsuna responds in kind. It feels like forever since the last time she's seen Evangeline, and the light-hearted teasing is a forceful reminder of that. Something close to homesickness, but not quite, knots in her gut.

"I miss you," she says honestly, and she's surprised to see Evangeline's image in the mirror blush.

"Cut that out, it's embarrassing."

"But it's true!"

"Ugh, you're making it worse."

Evangeline ducks out of the frame for a few seconds then reappears, once again composed.

"Well, I guess it's a good thing that you're learning about these kinds of feelings, as disturbing as your expression of them may be…" the blonde mumbles the last part. "But besides that, I'm calling because I have something important for you to do."

"Aren't I already doing something important?"

"You can add this to your list of chores, then. This particular task has to get done much sooner though, so no lollygagging."

Setsuna nods, looking a lot more alert than she had when she'd first opened the compact.

"What do I have to do?"

Evangeline holds something up in front of the mirror. It's an old, weathered scroll, and on the dried parchment is a picture made in thick lines of black ink. Setsuna studies the image, cocking her head to the side to make sure she's seeing it right.

"Does that crow have three legs?"

"That's right."

"I've never seen an animal like that."

"That's because it doesn't exist," Evangeline responds, rolling up the scroll and reappearing in the mirror. "It's a mythical creature of some importance to Asian culture. It dates back to the Neolithic era in China, but there isn't anything useful to me from that time that still exists. However, the legend reappeared in Japan in the early 1800s. That's modern enough that there still might be some useful items around."

"Why is it so important?" Setsuna asks, not quite understanding the relevance of these old folktales.

"Without going into details, something happened around that time which spawned the legend of the Yatagarasu in Japan. Unfortunately, I wasn't anywhere in the vicinity when it happened, and I'm trying to figure a few things out."

Setsuna pauses, recognizing an inconsistency.

"…How old are you?"

"Old," Evangeline says simply. "More importantly, there's a relic of that time in the Kyoto National Museum. Mana's told me you're in the area?"

"I – I think so, yeah."

"Good. It's a small item made of silver and black lacquered wood, and it's in the shape of the crow I just showed you."

"You want me to research it?"

"No, I want you to steal it."

"YOU –" Setsuna recoils at the volume of her own voice, remembering Konoka on the bed outside, "You want me to steal from a national museum?"

"That's right."

Setsuna's no expert, but she knows museums are full of valuable things, and valuable things means a lot of really comprehensive, really thorough, really state-of-the-art security. There are quite a few questions she wants to ask, but she goes for the obvious one first.

"_How?_"

"I got some info from a security guard who works there. Once a week, on a randomly assigned day, the security system resets at three in the morning. Cameras, alarms, everything goes off – but only for five minutes."

"There's no way I can do that in five minutes! I don't even know where it is."

"Calm down, would you?" Evangeline rolls her eyes. "The person I spoke with has agreed to extend the shut down for some supposed maintenance, but only by ten minutes. The piece I need is currently on display in The Main Exhibition Hall; you can find a map of each building on the internet, I'm sure. Just get there ten minutes before three, wait for the shutdown, then run in and grab the thing. You'll have fifteen minutes – plenty of time."

_Plenty of time?!_ Sure, maybe in the movies, or maybe for a professional thief, but for Setsuna? Not so much.

"When does this happen?"

"Tonight."

Setsuna's head spins at the thought.

"I don't think I can do this," she mutters. "What do I do if I get caught?"

"_Don't_ get caught."

_How can she say it like I'm the one in control of that?_ But she has to do what she has to do, and saying no to Evangeline is out of the question. This is all part of her mission, and if she wants her life to get better, she has no choice but to do it. Even if it sounds ridiculously impossible.

"Okay," she sighs.

"I knew I could count on you," Evangeline says it mostly just to encourage the other girl. "I know you'll be fine. If you're nervous about someone finding the item on you, you'll only need to hold on to it for a few hours. At six in the morning there's going to be someone waiting outside your hotel. He's going to ask you 'how does the sun bird nest,' and then –"

"How _does_ a sun bird –"

"It's just a _code_ you –" Evangeline pauses, mid-reprimand, "Just say 'as the crow flies' and hand it over, okay?"

"Oh… kay."

"Good. Let me know when it's done."

With that, her image disappears, leaving Setsuna to look at her own confused face in the mirror's reflection.

"How the hell am I supposed to do this…?" She mumbles to herself. This isn't _The Italian Job_, she's never stolen anything before, and Evangeline hadn't even gone into detail about the mechanics. _How am I supposed to get in? Do I break a window? Am I supposed to come back here afterwards?_

Setsuna inhales deeply and then lets it out in a rush. _I'll figure it out, I guess._ First thing's first: she has to find a map. (And learn how to read it.)

She opens the bathroom door and finds Konoka sitting up now. She's lying in a pile of pillows and blankets, curled up like she'd made a nest. Her long hair is fanned out around her in a mess of tangles, her shirt is halfway up her body, and she's only wearing one sock – in short, she looks like a disheveled mess. Not that Setsuna can blame her, considering how they'd woken up.

"Good morning," Setsuna tries warily, unsure if the other girl is even coherent at the moment.

"Hey," Konoka responds weakly, "And I think it's good evening now. It's seven at night or something."

"S – _seven_? How long was I in the bathroom?"

"Like thirty minutes or something."

Setsuna looks out the window. The light is fading as the sun dips past the buildings, and she realizes she'd mistook the weakness of the sunlight for sunrise when it'd really been sun_down_. They'd actually been asleep for over ten hours – which means she now has way less time to prepare. _Crap_.

"What were you doing in there, anyway? I thought I heard you talking," Konoka asks, rolling lazily onto her side. Setsuna grabs the information card with the internet password on it, then her laptop, and plops onto her mattress.

"I was on the phone."

She can hear Konoka shifting on the bed.

"Your phone's been out here the whole time."

"Oh, right, uh…" Setsuna fumbles for an excuse, "I was… talking to myself. I didn't want to weird you out."

"You were talking to yourself… For half an hour?"

"Yeah. It helps me deal with bad memories and stuff, like after last night."

Konoka flops back down, curiosity more or less satisfied.

"Gotcha. If you don't mind, I think I'm just going to sleep until tomorrow. This hangover is brutal."

"That's fine." Perfect timing for Setsuna.

"And just so you know, Ayaka texted to tell me tomorrow's meeting got rescheduled for t six-thirty in the morning. We'll have to be out the door at least half-an-hour before that."

At this point Setsuna's about to tear her hair out. _So much for good timing_. How she's supposed to pull off a heist, hand over the goods, _and_ attend a business conference in the same three hours is beyond her. Not to mention, two of those events are supposed to happen at the same time.

"Yeah, that should be alright," she lies. _I'll figure it out when I get there_. For now, there's the issue of finding a good map, and maybe some decent burglar clothes. Whatever that means.

Konoka turns the off the lamp on her nightstand and rolls back over, leaving Setsuna free to plan. It's pretty easy to find a map of the museum online, and she pulls the website up on her phone for easy access. She spends an hour just staring at it, trying to absorb the information into her brain since she's not sure what the signal will be like in the museum. Just as she feels like she's going to go cross-eyed from staring at the screen, she sets her phone and laptop down on the desk and gets up quietly, not wanting to disturb Konoka. She opts for the same jeans she'd been wearing yesterday, since they're tight enough not to snag on anything. Rooting around her drawers, she comes up with a black zip-up sweater as her best option. She pulls the hood over her head and looks at herself in the mirror. The light in the room is dim now that Konoka's bedside lamp is off, and in the darkness it's difficult to distinguish her face.

_Just like in the movies, right?_

Setsuna bites her lip nervously. _Am I really going to do this? What happens if I get caught – how can I possibly explain that to Konoka?_

Her anxiety spikes and she opens the window to lean out of it, resting her elbows against the sill. The sun has completely gone down now and the night air is cool. She drinks it in and tries to calm her frantic mind. _I'll be fine_, she thinks over and over again, like a mantra. _Just because I have no idea what I'm doing doesn't mean I'll fail, necessarily…_

…_This isn't helping_. She ducks her head and comes back inside, leaving the window open. Her nervousness is making her overheat, and she tugs at her sweater uncomfortably.

Somehow she manages to keep herself composed until one in the morning, but at that point she's too restless to wait any longer. She goes down the stairs and out the door, grateful for the chilly breeze. There aren't too many people around, it being a Sunday night, and she's thankful for that too. It's very likely these stragglers will disappear as it gets later, which means less chance of getting caught.

Typing the address in her phone, she realizes a bit belatedly that she probably shouldn't be taking a taxi there. The museum isn't _too_ far away, about five miles, but she'll have to start walking now if she wants to get there with time to spare.

True to her calculations, she arrives fifteen minutes before three. It's easy to figure out that the most convenient way to get in would be to go through the West gate, which faces the Main Exhibition Hall directly. Peering in through the bars, she can make out three sets of doors – all closed, and all huge and made of metal. _No getting through those_. And even if she could, it wouldn't be the best idea. Though the cameras are going to be off, there could still be a few late-night wanderers around, and the last thing she needs is to get the cops called on her for trespassing.

Setsuna follows the sidewalk until she's just behind the building, then strays off into one of the museum's parking lots. There's a dark alley that runs the length of the structure, and she's disappointed to find that there aren't any breakable windows. _How the hell…_ How do they do this in the movies? If you can't go straight through the window, and you haven't spent the last two years tunneling underground, _the only way is up_.

Easier said than done, though. It's a long climb, and her one saving grace is a fire escape on an attached building. It doesn't lead to the roof of the one she needs to get into, though, and she warily checks the time. Five minutes before three. _Do I have time to go in through a different building? What if there are gates blocking the connecting halls…?_

These are all details that would've certainly been nice to know, but not having any real knowledge of these things, she resigns herself to doing this the hard way. If it doesn't work, well… _it has to work_, she tells herself firmly. There's no room for mistakes.

Setsuna waits underneath the ladder of the fire escape, anxiously shifting from foot to foot. She's not sure if she should climb it now or after everything's turned off – there may very well be active cameras on the roof, for all she knows. After about a minute of trying to decide, she notices that it's somehow gotten a lot quieter, and she realizes with belated alarm that the fans controlling the temperature inside the museum have stopped running. She checks her phone – _2:58am_ – two minutes early. _Damnit_.

The ladder is out of arms reach and she kicks off against the wall to get a little more height on her jump. Her fingers just barely catch the lowest rung, and with some effort, she hauls herself up. Her climb is hasty and maybe a bit too noisy, but with one minute already wasted she doesn't have time to concern herself with it.

Panting from the exertion, Setsuna gets to the roof and checks the time again. Two more minutes have gone by, and she looks around for any way inside. There are air circulators, but she isn't quite confident enough to climb through those fans – _if the power comes back on when I'm on my way out, I'll be in pieces… well, at least they wouldn't recognize my body…_

She shakes her head to dispel the morbid thought. _I'm not going to mess up_. There _is_ a door that presumably leads down into the building, but when she goes to open it, she finds it lock. _Isn't that against some kind of fire code!?_ She thinks frustratedly, trying again to pry the damn thing open. She gives it a kick, but the door doesn't budge. Setsuna checks the time again – 3:03am. _Fuck_.

Panicking now, she grips the door handle, and with every ounce of strength she has, gives it a vicious pull. There's the very conspicuous sound of metal grinding and then the door flies open, knocking her back on her butt. She gets up quickly and walks by the door, noting the huge padlock that'd been placed on the inside of it. _How the hell did I break that?_

Deciding to wonder about it later, she descends the stairs down into the museum, arriving on the second floor of the target's adjacent building. Setsuna's vision is good, but in the near pitch black it's difficult for even her to see. She pulls out her phone and holds it up to the wall, crossing her fingers for some kind of directional sign.

And there _is_ one. Except it's in Japanese. Groaning quietly, she pulls up the map on her phone and takes thirty seconds to stare at it – _if I came in from here, and the stairs only turned twice, that means the correct hallway should be… there. _She sprints in the direction of her best guess, just barely able to keep herself from running into things. After a minute of sprinting through the connecting hallway, she passes under an archway with a sign hanging over it in both English and Japanese – "Main Exhibition Hallway."

Smiling at her success and infinitely grateful that there aren't gates between buildings, she pulls out her phone again. 3:06am. Now the big question: how is she supposed to find something the size of her palm in pitch darkness? To make matters worse, the building is _huge_. The hall has two wings to it, and even running to the other side would take her more than a minute. She bites the inside of her cheek to keep calm. The light from her phone isn't bright enough to illuminate much of anything. _How can I make it brighter…?_

What is that common saying nowadays? Oh, right. 'There's an app for that.'

Ignoring the ridiculousness, she opens up the mobile store on her phone and downloads the first flashlight app she sees. It takes thirty seconds, but when she turns it on, her visibility increases ten-fold. Scanning it around, she sees numerous glass-covered cases. Setsuna steps up to each one and shines the light through, trying not to be creeped out by the echo of her footsteps bouncing off the high ceiling.

_It looks like I'm in the right place, at least_. There are various metal-works in the cases, but no three-legged crows. There's only one more case to check, and she crosses her fingers as she walks across the hall. Stopping just in front of it, her eyes narrow as something occurs to her.

The sound of footsteps hadn't stopped when she did.

_What the hell?_

She spins on her heel and shines the flashlight around, but as far as she can see, there's no one there. _Probably just an extended echo or something._

Turning her makeshift flashlight back on the case in front of her, she smiles with relief at the sight of a silver, black-lacquered wood, three-legged crow; the same one Evangeline had described. There's probably a pressure-sensitive alarm on the glass case, and she holds her breath nervously as she lifts it.

Silence.

She breathes a sigh and checks the time: 3:09am. About four minutes left. She quickly grabs the small ornament and shoves it in her pocket. _Now to get out of here_.

Holding her phone in her mouth so the light is angled on the now empty pedestal, she fumbles a bit to replace the glass covering.

…And then her heart skips a beat and her phone goes clattering to the floor.

In the brief moment it'd taken her to put the cover back in its place, she could've sworn she'd seen somebody's reflection in the glass. Somebody standing behind her.

No, scratch that.

Somebody standing behind her and _smiling_.

Her heart races as she picks up her phone with trembling hands, shining it around once more. No one. _Was I just imagining things…?_

Regardless, she doesn't have time to find out. Even if there _is_ someone in here with her, that's just all the more reason to hurry up and get the hell out of there. Not wasting any more time, she pivots on her heel and sprints back the way she came.

The neighboring building she'd come from has a similar high-ceiling, and she listens carefully for any discrepancy in the echo of her footsteps. So far she can't hear anything, but that might be because of her rapid breathing and all the blood rushing in her head. She can see the stairs to the fire escape now.

It's built into the wall, so there's no transition between the echo-y, high-ceilinged room and the stairwell, which is fairly narrow. She knows that as soon as her foot touches the first stair, the echoing should stop.

It doesn't.

With renewed vigor she books it up the stairs, slamming the door when she hits the roof.

Only to have it burst back open behind her.

_Shit!_

Setsuna doesn't turn around. She makes a dive for the ladder and nearly jumps all the way down it, descending the rungs haphazardly and tearing up her sweatshirt in the process. Thankfully, at least her hood remains intact, and she yanks the strings to tighten it as soon as her feet touch solid ground again. The sound of someone else's footsteps on the metal rungs has her sprinting again. Her lungs burn in protest, but her main concerns are the cameras and alarms – she can already hear the fans coming back on in the distance.

Her only thought is to get as far away from the scene of the crime as possible. If this person had been trying to get her caught, they probably would've called the cops already or just tackled her while she was vulnerable in the museum.

And if they weren't there to prevent her from stealing, that means they're chasing her for a different reason. Which could be very, very bad.

_Is it possible that there was another thief?_

But that still doesn't make sense. Why would a thief go after her? If he had a different object in mind to steal, he would very likely have just ignored her and carried on with his own business, or knocked her out if he thought she was a guard, or killed her, or _something_. If he _is_ a thief and he's chasing her, that means he must've been after the three-legged crow as well. But what the hell are the chances that they would be there the same night, at the same time, trying to steal the same thing? And moreover, how would he even have gotten in there? As far as she saw, the _only_ feasible entrance was the one she'd come in from, and that'd been locked until she'd gotten there, meaning he must've been following her since before she even went inside. _Come on, Setsuna, this isn't an episode of Jackie Chan Adventures. There's gotta be another reason._

Like it or not, she's about to find out.

An unnaturally strong gust of wind sends her tumbling. She'd been trying to make a diagonal break for the road and hadn't quite made it, but she's close enough that the streetlights illuminate her surroundings. Lifting her face from the dirt and scrambling to her feet, she looks around to try and find her assailant. She's in the middle of what appears to be an outdoor garden; the area is hedged in by trees and bushes, but beyond those she can see an iron fence about six feet tall. _Whoever's following me might not attack if I'm in the middle of the street._

She starts to make a run for it and nearly falls again when a hooded figure appears two feet in front of her. Setsuna skids to a stop. She's so close her nose is almost bumping into this guy's chest. He looks down and smiles at her, and she recognizes his face as the same one she'd seen in the glass cover's reflection in the museum.

"I'm going to need that back."

The boyish voice brings Setsuna back from her state of shock. She jumps backwards to get some distance and gives him a once over.

He's not particularly threatening looking, all things considered. He's probably just under six feet, with a narrow figure and messy white hair sticking out from underneath the hood of his sweatshirt. That same feature – the white hair – makes her nervous though. He's certainly not old enough for that to be his natural color, and his bluish-grey eyes are evidence enough that he doesn't carry the same genetic defect that Setsuna does.

"You're not with the police, are you?" She asks, already knowing the answer.

"Good guess," he laughs. "How did you know?"

"You're wearing jeans and a sweatshirt, for one thing…"

The bluntness of her tone seems to annoy him, and he runs a hand through his hair in irritation. The hood comes down with the gesture to reveal more unruly white locks.

"Yeah, well, I'm surprised you even noticed. Boss told me you're kind of slow."

_Boss? Is he an angel…?_ _This would probably be a lot easier to figure out if Evangeline had told me what the thing I'm stealing is for…_ she sighs. Of course, that would make things too easy.

"Who are you?"

"The name's Secundum Averruncus – kind of a shitty name, I know. People call me Karma for short, even though that kind of sucks too. But you can call me that," he says it like he's doing her a favor, "At least for the next fifteen minutes or so."

"Only for the next fifteen minutes?"

"Well, yeah," Karma's smile grows as he talks, effectively giving Setsuna the creeps. "That's about how long it'll take me to send your ass back to Hell."

Just as that sentence is finished processing in Setsuna's brain, Karma appears in front of her again and delivers a brutal backhand to her face, sending her reeling to the side.

_Not good_. She clumsily tries to regain her balance, but just as she does, she looks up to find him looming over her again. This time he lifts his knee into her stomach and she doubles over in pain. He looks down at her and _tsks_ disapprovingly.

"Aw, c'mon, it's no fun if you don't fight back."

Setsuna's on her hands and knees, trying to steady her breathing and come up with a plan. As quickly as her impaired state allows her, she leans back until she's sitting on her butt and kicks her legs out at his ankles, sending him tumbling in surprise. He lands on his back and she lunges forward, taking advantage of his vulnerability to jam an elbow into his throat. His eyes go wide with pain but his hands come up to grab her; she manages to get away just before he can grasp her arm.

She goes sprinting for the fence, but a hand on the hood of her sweater stops her. The collar presses against her throat uncomfortably and she lifts her arms up and ducks, shedding the piece of clothing.

"Fuck!" Karma grumbles, tossing the discarded sweater to the ground and sprinting forward. Setsuna's about ten feet from the gate when he grabs her by the shoulder and brutally pulls her towards him. She falls backwards and her head bangs against the concrete of the walkway so hard her vision goes black for a second.

"Ready to give up?" He plants a foot on her chest and leans over her with a cocky smile, like she hadn't just almost gotten away from him.

Panicking, Setsuna goes for her best bet. Even though his foot is on her torso, he hadn't secured her arms, so she balls her right hand into a fist and jams it upward with all her strength.

Right into his balls.

Karma lets out a strangled cry and falls over, clutching his man-parts in pain. Setsuna shoves him off her and unsteadily gets to her feet. She sprints forward – _I think I can make it this time_ – but just when her fingertips touch the bars of the fence a sudden gust of wind blows her backward.

She's tossed fifteen feet and her body collides with a tree. The wind keeps her pinned there while Karma stands on shaky legs and walks a bit lopsidedly over to her.

"You bitch," he snaps. "That was a cheap move!"

"And this isn't?" She looks pointedly at her arms, which are pinned overhead by the force of the wind. It doesn't seem to affect him, however, cementing the fact that he'd been the one to create it.

"Do you know how hard it is to gather magic on this planet?!"

_As if that makes it any more fair._

He dismisses the spell and replaces it with physical force, keeping her arms pinned to the tree with his hands. Her legs are free though, and she realizes she can probably get another good shot at his private parts.

Seeming to read her intentions, he glares and picks her up by the wrists, tossing her roughly to the ground a few feet away from him.

"Don't bother trying to run again; I have plenty more spells in my arsenal."

"I thought you said magic was hard to use here," she quips, mostly just to stall for time.

"You're talking to a master, you idiot! I'm the best of the best, the cream of the crop, the strongest opponent _you'll _ever face."

Despite his ridiculously egotistical speech, Setsuna can see the sweat dripping down his face. He'd obviously over-exerted himself using that spell, but he _does_ appear to be pretty powerful. It'd be a big risk to assume he's bluffing.

"Now, since I'm such a nice guy, I'll give you a choice. You can either hand that thing over, and then I'll kill you. _Or,_ I can kill you and then take it from your corpse. Your choice."

"…Is there a third option?"

He stares at her blankly for a second before erupting into laughter.

"Looks like our info was wrong. You're not so bad," he says once he's calmed down. "But no, I'm going to kill you. Boss's orders."

"So you're an angel, correct? Who's your boss then? Is it Nagi?"

If she's going to get killed here, she can at least return to Evangeline with some useful information. If Nagi is this guy's boss, that means he'd have to have known she was a demon to begin with. There's no way she can go back to Heaven if that's the case.

"Yeah, that's right, I'm an angel. One of the greatest!" He says again. Loudly. "And my boss is none of your business, but I'll tell you it's definitely not Nagi. That idiot has no idea what's going on – hell, if you're worried about him finding you out, I'm pretty sure he doesn't have a clue. He's too dense for that. But still," he continues, sauntering closer to her, but still keeping a few feet of distance, "I wouldn't bother going back to Heaven. If you do, I'll have to kick your ass again, and it hasn't been that much fun for me. So why don't you do us both a favor and abandon your ridiculous mission, okay?"

Setsuna tries to make sense of that information.

_Nagi's supposed to be the gatekeeper. Shouldn't he be aware of his subordinate's actions? Is this guy not a guardian then? That means there must be another group functioning in Heaven, one with enough influence to remain a secret to people like Nagi. And if they're bothering with _me_, then Konoka's soul is more powerful than I thought. Either that or I'm missing some vital information…_

Her eyes follow him as he circles around her. She can ask Evangeline later, but right now, she needs to get out of this situation. If Karma's job is to prevent her from getting to Heaven again, that means if she dies here there'll be no chance of a do-over.

With no other options, she decides to take the gamble. As quickly as possible she jumps up onto her feet and sprints for the gate again. Another gust of wind brings her right back, knocking the breath out of her as she hits the floor.

"I _told_ you, there's no way –"

Setsuna doesn't let him finish. She gets up and does it again, hoping that maybe she can wear him out. This time he brings her back more harshly than before, and she lands painfully on one shoulder.

"_Cut that out!_" He yells, obviously annoyed. "I already told you that I'm awesome. Even if I can't do anything fancy, I have _more_ than enough talent to keep somebody as useless as you under my control."

Setsuna grinds her teeth in irritation. _He's right. My physical body will probably wear out before he does, even if he can't "do anything fancy," whatever that –_

Her eyes widen as one very important piece of information crawls to the surface of her consciousness. She's not that injured, but she pretends to struggle to sit up, panting exaggeratedly. This is nowhere near her pain tolerance, but Karma probably doesn't know that. She glances around and spots her sweater a few feet away, within arm's reach if she lunges for it.

"Will you still attack me if there are humans around?" She gasps out, clutching her side. He rolls his eyes at her.

"There _is_ no one around. It's four in the morning on a Sunday, you idiot, and it's dark as shit. You're not making it over that fence, and no one's gonna come running to save you. Here, let me show you," he leans back and lets out a loud shout. It echoes for a second then dies down, and he grins at her tauntingly. "Sorry little lady, no one's coming for you."

The grin on his face fades when he sees her smiling.

"Good," she says, lunging for her sweater and pulling out her pactio cards in one smooth movement. "Adeat!"

_Please work, please work, please work – _

Her wings appear from her back with a _whumph_ of air, and she's surprised to feel the weight of a sword in her right hand. _This must be the one with Asuna_...

Without wasting any time, she leaps up into the air, flapping her wings to gain some height.

"Hey! What the _fuck_," Karma curses. "That's not fair either! I can't summon my wings on this planet!"

"I know that," she says, smiling at her success.

Her confidence ebbs a bit as she feels a powerful gust trying to pull her back to the Earth. She tries harder, beating her wings harshly and panting with exertion. Setsuna glances over her shoulder to see Karma standing below her at a bit of an angle, mumbling another spell, and looking just as tired as she is.

The force of the wind increases and she struggles harder, but despite her efforts, she can tell she's losing altitude.

"Quit struggling would you?! Come down here so I can kill you!"

"How tempting," she manages to say between gasps, her lungs and muscles straining.

"You think you're so fucking clever, don'tcha?!" He shouts over the noise of the wind. "I hate people like you, who think you're so much smarter than me –"

"Ugh," Setsuna grunts, losing more height as his spell gains power with his anger. _I should drop the sword. Maybe if I lose that weight I can –_

"Just like that _bitch_ Evangeline you're working for –"

Setsuna's grip on her sword tightens and every muscle in her body tenses with anger. She gives one last beat of her wings, managing to gain about a foot of height, and then spins suddenly so she's face to face with Karma. Not struggling anymore, she falls quickly, and she angles her sword out towards him. His spell drags her to his body and his eyes widen just before the blade impales him in the stomach.

His body hits the ground with a thump, and Setsuna withdraws the sword from his torso and points it at his throat.

"What – what the fuck…" He takes a gurgling breath and his sentence dissolves into a fit of coughs, blood and spit spraying out of his mouth. Setsuna presses the point of her sword further into his neck, jaw locked and eyes narrowed through obvious rage.

"Don't. Insult. Evangeline," she growls through gritted teeth.

He tries to move out from under her, but Setsuna doesn't give him any time. She grips the handle of the sword with both hands and pushes downward harshly, sending the blade through his jugular. The gurgling noises continue for a few more seconds before dying down, and she takes a second longer to stare at his corpse.

Setsuna takes a deep breath, trying to calm herself down and slow her heartbeat. The rushing of blood in her head dies down enough for her to be aware of her surroundings again.

_That idiot was way too loud_, she thinks, looking around. Even though he'd made a valid point about the time, there are more than enough residential buildings around for someone to have heard his noisy shouting. Sure enough, she can hear voices coming from the direction of the street.

Someone shouts something in Japanese and Setsuna can clearly see blue and red lights flashing through the trees.

_Fuck_.

Running back to the museum would tipoff the police about the stolen item. _I need to pass it off before they realize it's missing, or the risk is too big_. Even if she did run that way, as soon as they see Karma's body, there's going to be tons of other cops searching the area. At the same time, the street is definitely not an option since that's where the lights are coming from.

With no other choice, she wipes her blade on the grass and runs along the fence until she can't hear the voices anymore. Glancing around to make sure no one is looking, she wraps the sword in her sweater and takes flight again. She stays low until she's far enough away that the cops won't see her, then beats her wings hard to gain altitude. It's dark enough that even if someone did look up, they wouldn't be able to make out her figure. Not that it would really matter – who would believe there was a girl flying over the city?

Setsuna stays far above the tops of all the buildings as she maneuvers back to her hotel, trying to stay out of better-lit areas and places where people may be awake. When her hotel comes in view she circles over it a few times. Looking down, she finds to her dismay that a few cars are in the front, people climbing out of them to check in despite the early hour.

_Damnit_. She considers staying in the air until they've checked in, but there's no guaranteeing more people won't show up. Not to mention there's only about an hour left before sunrise. Most people would play it off as a hallucination or a trick of the eyes if they saw her in the dark, but in the light, there'd be no denying the huge white wings jutting out of her back.

The other option would be to fly right into the open window of her room and hope that Konoka doesn't wake up.

_That's a horrible idea._

If Konoka sees her like this, what's she supposed to say? _Oh yeah, I didn't tell you? I'm actually a demon. But don't worry; I'm not going to do anything evil to you yet, hahaha…_

Probably not. _But what other choice do I have?_

The back of the hotel is pressed up against another building and there are well-lit streets on both of its sides. At four-thirty in the morning, the early birds are starting to rise and head out to work, and it's now safe to say that it'd be difficult to find a completely empty area, which means landing and walking in through the front is no longer plausible.

_I could get closer to the ground, then unsummon my wings and fall the rest of the way…?_

But even that would require an explanation, if she even lived. She wouldn't be able to get closer than about twenty feet from the floor without people noticing her, and a two story fall is not something to scoff at. Explaining broken limbs might be difficult.

_I guess I don't have a choice._ She can see the open window to their room on the third floor. The lights are still off, but there are people on the street below. _I'll have to gain some speed then fly through before they notice, _she thinks, fiddling with her pactio card nervously.

The window is small enough that it's going to be near impossible to fly through it both quickly _and_ quietly. _I'll have to unsummon my wings right as I get to the window and hope my momentum carries me through._

There are more than a dozen things that can go wrong, but not having any choice, she gets some distance from the hotel and takes a second to adjust her angle. When she's fairly confident about the trajectory, she grips the pactio card in one hand, takes a deep breath, and glides toward the window. The sharp downward angle gives her plenty of speed, and right as her head goes through the frame she mutters a quick _"_abeat." Her wings and the sword disappear, leaving the rest of her body able to pass through without the interference of extra body parts.

That doesn't mean it's graceful though.

Not able to stop herself, she lands on the floor and rolls. One of her legs smacks into a dresser, sending a variety of items clattering to the floor noisily. The momentum carries her even further, and she tumbles head over feet into the open bathroom door, causing it to slam into the wall behind it so hard it nearly comes off the hinges.

She holds her breath and lies there on her back with both legs kicked up against the door, too afraid to move out of the awkward position.

Just when she feels it's safe to get up, there's a soft groan from one of the beds.

"…What the hell…? Setsuna, is that you?"

"Uh, yeah…?" Setsuna calls back nervously, finally getting to her feet. She backtracks into the bedroom and finds the bedside lamp turned on and Konoka surveying the damage.

"What the heck just happened?"

One minute Konoka had been asleep, the next there'd been an unignorable racket. Her hairbrush and makeup are all over the floor, and the dresser they'd fallen from is skewed sideways from what she can only assume was a powerful impact. Setsuna sidles into the room, a nervous expression on her face, and Konoka's eyebrows shoot up in surprise. She's dressed very strangely, for one thing, in muddy black jeans and carrying a ripped up sweatshirt. Weirder still is the bruise that covers half her face. There's a bit of dried blood on her chin, and spatters on her hands as well.

"Care to explain?" Konoka asks impatiently, a little worried, and more than a little annoyed at the interruption to her sleep. _I have to be awake in half an hour, too…_

Setsuna's eyes dart around the hotel room – as if this situation wasn't suspicious enough without that last signifier – as she tries to come up with an excuse.

"I went for a walk," she says lamely. That explanation doesn't appear to satisfy Konoka, however, so she fumbles for details. "I went out because I couldn't sleep, and I tripped outside so I decided to come back… and, uh, when I got here it was really hot in the room, so I went to open the window – but it was so dark I couldn't see, so I tripped and fell, and I guess I must've hit my face…"

They stare at each other for a moment. Konoka's about to question the legitimacy of that poorly fabricated story, but something shiny on the ground catches her eye.

"What's this?" She asks, holding up the three-legged crow. Setsuna checks her pockets and cringes at the item's absence. _It must've fallen out when I crashed._

"It's just something I picked up at a souvenir shop a while ago, but I think I'm going to return it. So, uh, I'll keep it with me if you don't mind."

She holds out her hand and Konoka takes one last look at the weird thing before handing it over. She glances irritably at her phone and turns off the alarm she'd set. There's no point going back to sleep now.

"You should probably start getting ready." Konoka's tone is much more curt than usual; even Setsuna notices.

"Okay," she replies meekly, knowing the other girl is annoyed. And who wouldn't be? She'd just woken her up to a crap ton of noise, and if she hadn't thought Setsuna's weird behavior was irritating before, she probably does now.

Officially cowed, Setsuna grabs some work clothes and takes a record-setting shower. She comes out to find Konoka fully clothed and looking tired but ready to go. Normally she wouldn't be so sleepy – she'd been passed out for almost ten hours – but the hangover from the day before left her with a lingering headache. Setsuna can tell her patience is thin, but she also knows she needs to find a reason to miss the first half of the meeting so she can deliver the crow.

"Are you ready to go?" Konoka asks, checking the time on her phone.

"Um, kind of," Setsuna starts hesitantly, "But I was thinking: do you mind if I go and return that thing before the meeting? I can meet you there."

Konoka looks up from her phone, an expression of _are you serious_ written on her features.

"I know it's a pain in the ass, but I kind of need you to be there. There's going to be tons of snooty business people, and as dumb as it is, they won't take me as seriously if I don't have someone following me around to do things that I should be doing myself."

"I – I know," Setsuna averts her eyes so she doesn't have to look at the other girl's frustration, "But it's really bothering me. It's not a conference meeting, right? If I show up a bit late I doubt anyone will notice…"

"Are you _really_ going to bail on me to go get your money back, at six in the morning, for something you don't care about?"

"It's not _bailing_, exactly. I'm just… going to be a little late…"

Konoka takes a deep breath and turns away, opting to fix her clothes in the mirror and make some adjustments rather than continue this strange conversation.

_Why can't she just let it go?_ Konoka grumbles inwardly as she touches up her mascara. She knows Setsuna's strange, and she's done her best to be thoughtful about it. She hardly wants to put pressure on the other girl considering what she's been through and how it's obviously affected her. But to leave a friend hanging for something as trivial as what's probably a ten dollar souvenir? That makes no sense to Konoka, who is far too thankful to finally be forming a friendship to consider pissing Setsuna off over something like that.

And it's true that the meeting is more like a breakfast party than anything else, but if anything that makes it _more_ nerve-wracking. She usually hates the overly formal conferences, but at least in that atmosphere everybody's limited to talking strictly business until the meeting is over at a specified time. These kinds of events are brutal when she doesn't know anyone but two people, and Ayaka and Asuna will probably be busy trying to verbally maneuver through the crowd as it is. Without Setsuna, she'll be left to do it alone.

_Not that she'd be much help._ Konoka's hand pauses with the brush halfway through her hair. _That was mean_, she sighs, reprimanding herself. It's not Setsuna's fault she's so awkward, Konoka knows, but it's wearing on her patience. She hadn't expected that spending time with someone who's so… _socially unaware_ would be so taxing. This would've been a good time to act as Setsuna's boss rather than her friend, but Konoka had already gone too far for that to be an option anymore.

"Just meet me there when you can, okay? I'll text you the address," Konoka says, grabbing her purse and trying to sound friendly.

"Yes ma'am."

She looks at Setsuna, skeptical and irked by the girl's formality, especially considering she'd just mentally admitted that she considers her a friend and not an employee.

"I didn't mean it like an order, you know."

"Okay," Setsuna replies timidly, keeping her head down and her eyes on the floor.

Which only makes Konoka feel guilty, which only serves to piss her off _more_.

"Whatever…" she mumbles, but of course Setsuna hears her and just ducks further down.

Throwing her hands up in surrender, Konoka grabs her purse and heads out the door. She takes the stairs down, smiling politely at some people toting their bags up to the higher floors. The concierge calls out a good morning, and she gives a quick wave before stepping out of the hotel. The sun is barely up and the air is still crisp, and Konoka takes a second to breathe.

"Excuse me?"

She exhales and turns her head to spot a rather short teenager in a beanie leaning against the wall.

"Yes?"

"How does the sun bird nest?" He asks, approaching her slowly.

"Um, what?"

The guy gives her a quick up and down, but not like he's checking her out, more like he's trying to determine something.

"How does the sun bird nest?" He tries again.

"I'm sorry," she says, making a show of checking the time, "I have no idea what you're talking about."

The guy retreats to his place against the wall, and without any more interruptions, she gets in one of the cabs and shows the driver the address of the meeting place. Glancing in his rearview mirror, she can see the young man accosting some other women around her age.

_Is everybody going to be like this today…?!_

**XXX**

Setsuna waits fifteen minutes, sitting on the bed with her head hung dejectedly, before venturing outside. By now Konoka has definitely left, and she checks the message on her phone for the address. The concierge ducks underneath his desk despite her friendly wave, and when she gets outside she looks around for whoever it is she's supposed to be passing off this item to.

"Excuse me?" The same boy that had approached Konoka asks, bouncing off against the wall of the building to stand up straight. Setsuna nods at him, and he continues, "How does the sun bird nest?"

"As the crow flies," she responds, fiddling with the item in her pocket. His expression turns serious and he holds out his hand, palm up. She hands it over and he inspects it to his satisfaction before shoving it in the pocket of his sweatpants.

"Nice work," he grins at her, "Lord Animus thanks you."

Setsuna shrugs. She hardly cares about Hell's mysterious leader; he's the cause of her suffering, more or less. The only person in Hell she has any respect for whatsoever is Evangeline.

The boy heads off without another word, leaving her to plug the address Konoka had texted her into the GPS. The route comes up, and the thought of her destination gives her nervous tingles.

_What if she's still mad?_

Setsuna isn't used to having to work out issues when someone is angry with her; usually they're mad for something that she had nothing to do with. In that case, her only response is to lessen the blow by avoiding eye contact and introverting in general. Konoka hadn't been too happy about that though, leaving her to wonder what it is she's supposed to do. The amount of guilt and anxiety is surprising; she didn't think she'd have cared that much if Konoka got mad at her.

"But I don't _want _her to be angry," Setsuna mumbles as she paces, ignoring the strange looks from passerbys, "I want her to like me."

It's a strange thought. The only other person whose opinion she cares about is Evangeline's.

_For the mission? _She wonders curiously, but that's questionable. If it were just for the mission she'd consider this nothing but a minor setback, rather than something that's legitimately eating away at her. _I guess I just actually want her to like me…_

Which means being any later to the meeting is probably a bad idea. Cringing at the hour, she looks around for a cab. Unfortunately, all the taxis that'd been dropping people off had left already, and there aren't any others around. She looks at her GPS: four miles to the convention center. _It'd take pretty long just to call a cab, and even longer for it to get here… _Sighing, she does one full body stretch before taking off in a run.

**XXX**

The convention center is big, modern, and considerably out of place considering the surrounding architecture. The inside had proven to be no different, with several huge rooms and multiple floors. Which suits Konoka just fine: it means more places to hide.

She's been in the meeting room for forty-five minutes now. Ten of them she's managed to spend sequestered in the bathroom, eight pretending to make a phone call in the hallway, but the other twenty-seven have been awkward and tiring. Multiple people have come up to ask her about the business and how she's doing, how her father is – all that polite talk. She finds herself having to answer the same questions over and over again while still having to seem interested. Most of these people she's only met a few times, but some of them have known her since she was a kid. Of those men, half of them tell her how beautiful she is – _just like your mother! _– and how proud they are, despite the fact that she hardly remembers them. The other half have the gall to hit on her, and she's had to politely excuse herself several times now.

"Why the hell do we have to do this?" She grumbles to Ayaka when they're both at the buffet table. Although the smile never leaves her face, Ayaka is sympathetic.

"Because running a business is more about appearances than actually running a business."

Konoka giggles at the truth of it as she pours herself some more coffee.

"I don't know how you do it, Ayaka. You always look so excited when you talk to people. Even Asuna is well behaved today."

"That, my friend," Ayaka says with great flourish, "Is because these men will jump on any mistakes you make, exaggerate them into unrecognizability, then publicize them to ruin your company. Even eating too much can spread some nasty rumors, especially for us ladies."

At that the blonde swipes a mini-muffin off of Konoka's crowded plate, glancing around to make sure no one is looking before shoving the whole thing in her mouth. Ayaka winks at her and Konoka has to stifle her laughter.

Despite the pressure, Konoka can admit this conference isn't as bad as she thought it'd be. It helps that her father is the owner of the company; her chances of getting unseated are as close to zero as they can be. From that view, it'd be difficult for her to embarrass herself badly enough for any negative consequences. And, after three cups of coffee, she's not nearly as tired. At this point she can admit she probably overreacted to the debacle with Setsuna this morning.

_She didn't mean any harm, and I didn't even ask if she was okay…_

"Why the long face?"

Konoka looks up to find Asuna standing next to her, enthusiastically pouring herself another mimosa.

"I had a bit of a tiff with Setsuna this morning," she says with a frown, wondering if getting a drink as well would be a bad idea.

"What happened?"

"I just… got really frustrated. She can just be kind of oblivious, you know?"

Asuna looks like she's about to say something, but her expression quickly changes to a sympathetic smile.

"You mean like right now?"

Konoka turns around just in time to catch Setsuna stagger through the open double doors, one hand on her ribs and panting tiredly. They make eye contact and Setsuna averts her gaze, still worried about their interaction this morning. Still, with no other reason to be there than Konoka, she warily approaches the brunette. Several pairs of eyes follow the slightly sweaty, disheveled, clearly exhausted girl as she walks up to the banquet table.

"Yeah," Konoka sighs, "Like right now."

When she reaches the table Setsuna mutters a quick "hi," but keeps her eyes on the floor.

"What the hell happened to _you_?" Asuna jabs a finger in her direction.

"There weren't any taxis, so I had to run."

"You _ran_ the four miles here?" Konoka asks incredulously. "Why didn't you just call a cab?"

"I – I thought it'd take too long, and I didn't want to make you any angrier…"

She looks like a kicked puppy, damnit, but at the same time, quite a few people are looking in their direction and whispering.

"That's okay," the brunette says tightly. "You're here now."

Setsuna lifts her eyes from their previously fixed position, but only to take a look around. There are a few dozen people here, all dressed in suits and dresses and formal attire, but one person sticks out like a sore thumb. In the back of the room, right in front of the air conditioner, what looks to be a twelve-year-old kid stands in professional, child-sized attire. He appears to be making animated, polite conversation with various people as they pass by.

Konoka seems to have noticed him as well, and she nods in his direction.

"Is that a kid?"

"Yeah," Asuna rolls her eyes. "He's quite the brat, but he's the protégé of one of the top law firms. Supposedly he graduated from college at ten – some kind of a child genius or something. His name's Negi."

"Why do you say he's a brat?" Konoka asks curiously. "He seems pretty well behaved to me."

"I hate kids," the redhead grumbles as her only explanation.

They watch as various people come up and shake his hand. A woman, one of the few in the conference, pats his head affectionately. He blushes at the attention and smiles at her, and she gestures at the air conditioner behind him, probably mentioning something about the cold. He nods, but just as he goes to say something, his head tilts back and a loud _aaaaachoo!_ causes several pairs of eyes to turn his way.

The woman's skirt flutters angrily in what appears to be a random gust of wind, and she smoothes it down in embarrassment. There are a few snickers, and she quickly excuses herself from the conversation.

"Jeez," Konoka mumbles, "Must be a faulty air-conditioner or something. I'd be seriously embarrassed if that were me."

Setsuna squints at the boy skeptically. That would've been quite the coincidence as it is, but there's a familiarity about him that raises her suspicions further.

"That's Nagi's son," Asuna whispers when Konoka's out of hearing range, "That perverted skirt-flipping wasn't the air-conditioner; he specializes in wind-based attacks, and he's powerful and stupid enough that he probably infused his sneeze with magic by accident."

Now that she mentions it, Setsuna can see the obvious resemblance between the young boy and the gatekeeper. She watches him warily, wondering if she has a reason to be worried or not.

"You and Konoka should go say hi!" Asuna says loudly enough for the brunette to hear. "Doesn't hurt to make some more friends, right?"

"Yeah, you're probably right, and I'm kind of curious anyway," Konoka admits, already on her way over. With a nudge from Asuna, Setsuna follows a couple of feet behind her.

Negi looks at them through wire-framed glasses as they approach, and his gaze lingers momentarily on Konoka. _Can he tell she's special?_ Setsuna wonders apprehensively. If he can measure her magical power, then he also might be able to determine Setsuna's impure heritage. He glances back and forth between them but doesn't seem concerned, so she lets herself relax a little bit.

"Hi there," Konoka smiles at him. "I'm Konoka Konoe. I've heard some impressive things about you."

His eyes widen when she says her name as something seems to click with him.

"Oh! You're Eishun's daughter, aren't you, Miss Konoe?"

"You know my dad?" She pauses mid-handshake. Eishun is hardly the talkative type, but Konoka is pretty sure her father would've told her about a little boy like this if he'd known one.

"Oh, no, not really. Our father's knew each other, and I remember when I was younger he'd tell me stories about their time together," his hand scratches the back of his head in the same nervous habit as Konoka's.

"Looks like we both do the same thing when we're embarrassed, too," she laughs, mirroring his actions. "Did you get that from your dad?"

"Yes, I did! I wonder which one of our father's started spreading that habit."

"I haven't called in a couple days; maybe after this boring meeting is over I'll ask him."

"You think it's boring?" He asks, surprised by her frankness.

"You don't?"

His hand instinctively goes back behind his head again, effectively being an admission that he finds it equally as dull. They both catch the action and laugh good-naturedly.

"Don't worry, I won't tell anyone," Konoka reassures him. "I'm not a big fan of this stuff myself. If you ever need to get bailed out or anything, why don't you take my phone number? I'd be glad to rescue you from these conferences if I can. Maybe we can hang out and you can tell me about your dad," she finishes with a smile, and his eyes light up excitedly.

"That sounds great!"

She reads out the digits of her number as he plugs them into his phone, sending her a text to make sure he'd gotten it correctly. Setsuna watches the interaction, still not sure what to make of this boy, until finally his eyes fall on her.

"I'm sorry; I forgot to introduce myself to you. I get carried away when it comes to my dad. I'm Negi Springfield," he offers his hand and she shakes it.

"Setsuna Sakurazaki," she replies. "And that's okay. Your dad was an interesting person."

Negi's expression changes rapidly from confusion to understanding as he realizes who Setsuna must be. His emotions read like a book; despite that he's a working professional, his child-like demeanor and openness gives him away easily.

"You knew his dad, Setsuna?" Konoka looks between them confusedly.

"Not quite," she covers. "I've heard quite a bit about him, though."

"He must be pretty famous then. I'm surprised my dad never mentioned him. What's his name?"

"His name was Nagi, and he wasn't that famous outside of his circle of friends," Negi says, reciting the information like he'd read it in a textbook. "He volunteered for the Peace Corps. and did a lot of philanthropic –"

Negi pauses, staring blankly at nothing with a look of deep concern.

"You okay?" Konoka asks, leaning down so they're closer to eye level.

"Um, yes, I – ah – _ah – ahhh_ –"

Setsuna glances at Negi, then at Konoka standing directly in front of him.

_This isn't going to end well,_ she knows, remembering both Asuna's words about wind magic and Konoka's desire to _not_ flash her panties to fifty strangers.

Not having much time, she pushes Konoka out of the way a lot less gracefully than she would've liked just as Negi finishes his sneeze with a remarkably loud _AAAACCCHHHOOoooo…!_

Konoka stumbles a bit from the force of the push. She looks back at Setsuna, about to demand an explanation, but is greeted by the sight of her friend's half-naked body.

"Oh – I'm – I'm so sorry, Setsuna, I didn't mean to…!" Negi covers his face both from embarrassment and from not wanting to stare.

"It's okay, I don't really mind."

_Don't mind!? _Konoka stares at Setsuna, who's clad only in her bra and panties, and notices everyone else in the room doing the same thing. Her clothes have somehow come right off her body, and they lie in tatters behind her.

"Um, Konoka?" Setsuna asks, still having the presence of mind to be shy about their fight – but not about the fact that she's practically naked, "I know I said I'd stay here with you, but I think maybe I should go find some clothes."

Looking around uneasily, Konoka takes off her blazer and hands it to Setsuna.

"That's… fine… I'll meet you back at the hotel."

With nothing but a nod, Setsuna turns around and walks out the door. Every pair of eyes in the vicinity follows her figure until she's out of sight. Normally the room would've very likely erupted into a fit of whispers and giggles by now, but she strolls away so nonchalantly that no one can think to question the pure absurdity of the situation until she's already gone. After a few more seconds of silence, conversations resume.

"Negi, you dork!" Asuna has gotten up to them by now, and she bops him on the head with her fist.

"Asuna! It's not his fault the air-conditioner is broken," Konoka quips. "But still," the brunette continues, baffled by what'd just occurred, "How did she know that was going to happen?"

"No clue," Asuna mumbles, glaring pointedly at Negi, who shrinks under the harsh stare. After a moment she relents and then turns to Konoka. "Well, no matter how she did it, it was pretty nice of her to take the hit for you. I doubt you would've gotten away so easily if you'd been the one to get stripped."

"Yeah, that's true…"

Guilt slowly makes itself apparent as Konoka remembers how just a few minutes earlier she'd been so angry at the other girl.

"I'd better go after her," she says, interrupting a quiet squabble between Negi and Asuna. "I'll see you guys later, okay?"

They both turn to say goodbye, but she's already halfway out the door.

**XXX**

The cab ride home was short, but she'd kept an eye out for Setsuna just in case the girl had decided to run the four miles back naked – not completely out of the question for her. Konoka hadn't spotted her though, thankfully, and when she enters the hotel room she finds Setsuna sitting cross-legged on the bed in some sweatpants and a t-shirt, TV playing quietly in the background.

She looks up when Konoka steps into the bedroom but quickly looks away again, and the guilt that'd manifested in the brunette earlier intensifies.

"I see you didn't run home this time."

"I didn't have to. People seemed a lot more willing to pick me up."

"I wonder why," Konoka jokes, obviously referring to Setsuna's nudity. The humor falls flat though, and Setsuna shrugs.

"I'm not sure either."

Konoka stands there quietly for another minute until Setsuna turns her attention back to the television. Biting her lip nervously, she kicks off her shoes and goes to sit next to the other girl on the bed. _I should apologize_, she thinks, but is surprised to find Setsuna beat her to the punch.

"I'm sorry," Setsuna blurts out, and the apology hangs in the air for a few seconds. Her face turns red and she continues hesitantly, "I know I kind of ruined your day, and I should've just gone with you to the meeting. It was stupid of me not to – and to make it worse, I somehow got stripped in the middle of the conference, and… I'm sorry. For being stupid."

Setsuna stops there and hugs her legs to her chest, resting her chin on her knees and looking anywhere but the girl next to her. Konoka considers the apology and tries to find the right words.

It's true that her oblivious nature can be a bit of a hassle, but to be honest, it's that same quality that played a part in saving Konoka's reputation today. Most people wouldn't be willing to get naked in front of a bunch of strangers for something as shallow as their friend's status, but Setsuna had done it without batting an eye. More than that, her indifference for social rules had somehow turned the entire affair into a non-event – something that certainly wouldn't have been true if Konoka had been in her place.

But it's too easy to pin Setsuna's surprise rescue on her indifference; even though she obviously hadn't cared about the consequences, it's the fact that she legitimately cares about Konoka's well-being that caused her to act in the end. And that's the part that matters, Konoka knows.

"You're not stupid," the brunette says after a lengthy pause, "And I'm not mad at you anymore."

Setsuna finally lifts her head, and her eyes are lit up with a hopefulness so earnest it's impossible not to smile at her.

"Really?" She asks, making real eye contact for the first time today.

"Really," Konoka affirms. "I like you just the way you are. _I'm_ the one that should be sorry for being kind of a bitch this morning. You're a good friend, Setsuna, and anything else is secondary."

Setsuna smiles at her and Konoka can't squash the thought that _she's so freaking adorable_. Honestly, the girl looks like she'd just been proposed to or something, rather than apologized to. There's a moment of awkward silence and Konoka laughs at that because, well, _I'd better get used to it_.

Taking the lead, she wraps her arms around Setsuna in a hug, and the other girl tentatively hugs her back.

"Is there something I can do to make up for being mean today?" Konoka asks after they'd let go. Setsuna averts her eyes again, and this time Konoka can kind of guess where this is going.

"I didn't get much sleep last night, so I was thinking about taking a nap…" Her words diffuse into mumbles, but the word _cuddle_ is definitely in the mix somewhere.

Konoka shoves the blankets to the side and crawls under them, motioning for Setsuna to do the same. When they're both settled she turns out the bedside lamp. There's still light coming in through the window, and Konoka catches the contented smile on her friend's face and can't help but tease her.

"Jeez, I'm going to spoil you if we keep doing this."

"R – really? Should we stop?" Setsuna lifts her head off of Konoka's shoulder in alarm, and the brunette giggles at her reaction.

"It was a joke, Silly."

"_Oh_, I'm sorry –"

"Don't worry about it," Konoka reassures her, "I wouldn't have it any other way."

**XXX**

* * *

**A/N: **Good God they're cute.

To all my reviewers, I owe you another hearty thank you! You all make my day, and as cliché as that sounds, I can't think of any other way to express my gratitude for your comments :) This chapter was pretty plot heavy, but there's going to be more and more KonoSetsu moments along the way. I must warn you though, that feeling of second-hand embarrassment isn't likely to disappear any time soon, haha. Also, I apologize for any typos or added commas in here; I had to change my spell/grammar checker options for school, so they're all wonky now.

To settchan-1995, thank you for your reviews! They help motivate me to keep writing, and if you want to recommend this story in your own/to your friends, I'm certainly not going to complain. Having more readers is always a plus, after all!

Now if you all will excuse me, I'm going to go hang my Conscientious Author Award, courtesy of Penshil, on my wall.

Please review in your way out!


	7. I'M AN ADULT

**I'M AN ADULT**

* * *

**XXX**

After Setsuna woke up from her nap, Konoka had briefly gone out to grab some DVDs and video games, and they'd spent the rest of the evening struggling through Resident Evil 6.

"What the – how are we supposed to kill this thing?" Konoka shouts indignantly, watching Setsuna's character get eaten by a massive sea creature.

"I don't know," Setsuna answers a bit too seriously, "I've never had to kill a giant zombie shark before."

"I'm gonna look it up online. Can I use your computer?"

"Sure."

Konoka squirms her way out of the blankets and grabs Setsuna's laptop from where it'd been sitting on the desk. There's no password, and she logs in to an open browser window. It looks like a blurb about the Kyoto National Museum, accompanied by a map.

"Did you want to go to the museum or something?" She calls out, opening a new tab for GameFAQs. There's a slight clatter as Setsuna drops her controller.

_I forgot to close the page…_

"N – no, no, not really. I just wanted to see what was around here. Did you find out how to kill the shark yet?" Setsuna's reply is delivered with obvious nervousness, and the deflection hadn't been any less subtle either. Thankfully, Konoka doesn't think anything of it.

"Yeah," she scoffs at the obvious answer on the forum, "Shoot it in the mouth, duh. Why didn't I think of that?"

"Probably because you've never had to kill a giant zombie shark either."

"True," Konoka giggles, sitting back down in their nest of blankets and pillows on the floor.

They resume playing, managing to kill the monster and progress, but the mention of the museum Setsuna had robbed a little over twelve hours ago reminds her she should probably call Evangeline. She tries to wait for Konoka to go to sleep, but around midnight she gives up on that idea. What had happened during the heist, although she personally can't understand the significance of it, should probably be relayed as soon as possible. Whey they finish a chapter and the achievements screen comes up, Setsuna puts her controller on the floor in front of her and stretches.

"Going somewhere?" Konoka asks without looking at her, too busy rearranging her character's skill set and power-ups.

"Actually, I think I'm going to step outside to make a phone call if you don't mind. It shouldn't take long."

That one strikes Konoka as a bit odd, considering Setsuna had mentioned previously that she didn't know anyone else to call.

"An old friend or something?" She turns to face the other girl, and seeing Setsuna nod, continues with her guessing game. "Asuna?"

"No, actually, a different old friend. Or, I guess you could call her more of a teacher or something…"

"Aw, c'mon, now I'm curious. Tell me!"

Setsuna shifts her weight, looking slightly uncomfortable. That only makes the other girl _more_ curious, of course, but she holds it at bay.

"You don't _actually_ have to tell me, Silly."

Setsuna considers it for a moment. It's not like Konoka's ever going to find out who Evangeline is – or not anytime soon, anyway. Not able to find the harm in it, she acquiesces to Konoka's probing.

"It's okay. Her name's Evangeline and she used to mentor me in high school. She was the only one that was ever nice to me – besides Asuna, I mean. Since I got a phone we got back in touch, and she asked me to call her once in a while."

"Oh," Konoka looks appropriately surprised. "That's great! Don't let me keep you then, I'll be here when you get back."

Smiling in thanks, Setsuna grabs the compact _and_ her phone this time before heading out the door. Considering the more-risky-than-normal topic of conversation today, she didn't want to jeopardize her fake identity by talking in the bathroom. Instead she steps out of the hotel and walks a few yards away, leaning against one of the nearby buildings. She puts her phone against her ear, just in case anyone's looking, before opening up the compact.

It takes a bit longer than normal for Evangeline to appear on the screen, and when she does, she looks annoyed.

"What is it?" She growls, and Setsuna cringes at her tone.

"Um, I was just calling to let you know how it went and stuff…"

Evangeline stares at her for a moment then takes a deep breath.

"Okay," she says, more calmly now, but Setsuna's still a bit unnerved.

"Is something wrong?"

"Kind of. I got the piece I asked you to get for me, and it turned out to be a dud. That's all."

"Are you sure?" Setsuna asks with no small amount of surprise.

"Yes, why?"

"Because someone tried to stop me from taking it."

Evangeline's eyes narrow slightly and there's the sound of wood scraping against floor as she pulls up a chair.

"_Who_ tried to stop you from taking it?"

"I'm not really sure… He said his name was Secundum Avern – Ava – Averruncus, or something. He's an angel, and he tried to use magic to kill me."

"Averruncus… I've never heard that name before, but I think I can guess," Evangeline mumbles quietly, and then a bit more loudly, "Did he say anything else?"

"He said a lot actually. He was pretty loud," Setsuna recalls, wincing at the recollection of events. "He said not to worry about Nagi because he doesn't have any idea what's actually going on –"

"Psh, figures," Evangeline scoffs.

"And he said that he has a boss, but he didn't say who, but whoever it is wants me to abandon my mission. He also said if I went back to Heaven again he'd kill me…. Oh, and he seemed to really, really want that crow thing."

Evangeline hums in thought at that. She gets up and disappears from view for a second, coming back with a heavy looking metal box and the object in question. The vampire mutters something under her breath, pushing the crow to the front of the box, and the lid squeaks open. There's a scroll inside and she opens it up, appearing to read its contents for a moment.

"This must be more important than I thought, but I'm not sure how…"

"What's it say?" Setsuna tilts the mirror as if it'd help change the viewpoint. It doesn't, of course, and she waits for Evangeline's answer.

"Absolutely nothing."

The vampire turns the parchment to face Setsuna, and sure enough, it's completely blank.

"He didn't say why he wanted it, did he?"

Setsuna shakes her head in the negative, "No, that was all he told me. Then he insulted you, so I killed him," she finishes with a touch of pride in her voice.

"Well, wasn't that considerate of you," Evangeline laughs, and Setsuna smiles and blushes at the praise. "Still," she continues when her laughter's died down, "That he knew I was giving orders is probably a bad sign. But I guess it was just a matter of time anyway."

There's a pause as Setsuna weighs that statement. It's becoming clearer and clearer that her mission isn't as black and white as she'd thought, and Karma had certainly convoluted her basic idea of it. There seems to be a lot more going on behind the scenes, and although she doesn't feel she has the right to know it, that doesn't quell the _desire_ to know it.

"Evangeline, can I ask you something?"

"Hmm?"

"Why am I doing this?"

The blonde, who had been rolling up the scroll to put it away, stops to give Setsuna an incredulous look.

"Is that a serious question?"

"…Yes?" Is Setsuna's hesitant response. Feeling the need to justify herself, she explains, "I mean, I know I need to take Konoka's soul, but um, no one's really told me why yet, and it just seems like maybe I should know. Just in case people keep trying to kill me…"

"Mana didn't tell you?"

"Not – not really."

"Seriously?" The vampire sighs. "That woman won't do a bit of work over what she's paid for… Well, it's not important for you to know everything. It's probably better if you don't," she muses out loud, "But you made a valid point. It'll take too long for me to explain verbally; I'll just have to show you."

"Show me? I thought there weren't any portals from here to back home –"

"There aren't. That's part of the problem. Just go to sleep tonight, and when you do, I'll show you everything you need to know. For now I have to leave. It's going to take me a while to figure out what this piece of scrap paper is for."

"Okay," Setsuna agrees, though not really understanding, "Thanks. For taking the time to help me and everything, I mean…"

"There you go, getting all sappy again," Evangeline says it with a smile though. "In any case, I'll see you shortly."

Her image disappears from the mirror and Setsuna closes it, pocketing her phone as well. She walks back into the hotel room to find Konoka fiddling with her laptop. She glances up at the sound of the door opening and waves, but she also looks slightly disconcerted.

"Something wrong?" Setsuna asks after she's done getting ready for bed. She crawls under the covers and turns off her lamp, eager to get to sleep for once.

"No, it's nothing. Just some annoying work stuff."

Konoka closes her computer and goes to brush her teeth before getting in her own bed – much to Setsuna's disappointment. Whatever had been worrying the girl earlier doesn't seem to prevent her from falling asleep though, and after a few minutes her breathing steadies. Setsuna takes a bit longer, staring at the ceiling and trying to will her mind to shut off. After an hour, sleep claims her as well.

**XXX**

In all the years she'd been alive, however many that may actually be, Setsuna had never dreamt. Maybe it was because she couldn't envision anything outside of her day-to-day life, or maybe there was some force keeping her imagination from wandering. Or it could just be that she hardly ever sleeps, although you wouldn't know it watching her behavior over the past few days.

Regardless, having no experience with dream worlds of any kind, she's understandably confused to wake up in Hell. She looks down at her body, which she now realizes is utterly naked, and then back up again. Wherever she is, it's definitely Hell – same general topography, same heavy air, but it's also simultaneously different. If she squints she can see grass in the distance, and trees, which must mean water. But Hell has been nearly dry for as long as Setsuna can remember. _Did I die in my sleep?_ That wouldn't explain the change in environment though. She's about to get up and look around, but refrains after feeling someone else's presence.

"Welcome home," an amused voice says from behind her. She turns around to find Evangeline a few feet behind her in a similar state of undress.

"Why is everything weird?" Setsuna asks, gesturing vaguely at the landscape, "And why are we naked?"

"That's how the mind link works, unfortunately. I haven't managed to smooth that kink out yet. As far as why everything is _weird_, as you put it, that's because this is Hell before you were alive. We're in my memories, I guess you could say."

"This must've been a long time ago…"

Evangeline scowls at the implication, but to be fair, there's a big difference between what a long time is for her and what it is for Setsuna.

"I guess you could say that, but this is still after the war."

"What war?"

No sooner are the words out of her mouth than the scenery changes. Setsuna finds herself in the middle of a battlefield, but this doesn't look like an ordinary battle. She's never seen a group of angels and a group of demons together in the same area, but here there are hundreds scattered around; slashing, clawing, occasionally slinging magic at each other. One angel's sword flies straight through her, but being a conjured image, it has no effect. His weapon impales a stout, horned demon in the chest, and he falls to the ground without another breath.

"When – where – what?" Setsuna tries, watching the carnage with wide eyes.

"Thousands of years ago, on Earth –"

"_This_ is Earth?!"

"It _was_ Earth. It's before my time as well, but this memory is from a reliable source," she explains, watching with zero emotion as people die around her. "This was just around the time our planet started to die. Demons went looking for a new hospitable plane of existence, and lo and behold, there was Earth. We managed to get away with staying here for a couple millennia, but after that, angels came and crashed our party. The few attempts at verbal negotiation dissolved too quickly for anything to come of them," Evangeline takes a second to sigh at that. "Long story short: the angels wanted us gone, there was a war; they won, we lost. We were forced back to Hell after being slaughtered in large numbers. It was at that point Earth's magic was suppressed, and that's why all the portals disappeared."

"I'm confused," Setsuna admits after trying to absorb this information. "Why was Earth's magic suppressed? And what does that have to do with the portals closing? And – wait," she says, a thought striking her, "Why didn't the angels want us here?"

"It was suppressed for the purpose of closing off our access points. Portals are like magical black-holes. No magic, no portals."

"But I got to Earth from Heaven using a portal," Setsuna points out. An angel in front of her gets decapitated, and she watches the woman's body twitch on the ground.

"You can't get _back_ to Heaven using a portal, can you?" Evangeline asks in a deadpan, already knowing the answer.

"No, I can't."

"Like I said: magic suppression."

The image changes again, and the fidgeting corpse in front of Setsuna disappears. They're back in Hell now, but this time it's like they're watching from somewhere far away.

Everything seems to be sped up like a movie on fast-forward. There are cities – big, well-built, thriving cities – with demons and their families on the streets, going about their business. Setsuna can see them smiling, and laughing, and generally being very unlike the demons she's used to seeing. As the images speed past though, the cities start to collapse. They deteriorate slowly, frame-by-frame, until many of them are gone. The landscape which had started off being rather beautiful – similar to Earth's, she realizes – gets increasingly more desolate. The parched ground and the dying vegetation and the dried-up river beds she's used to seeing reappear, and as they do, the smiling faces become increasingly less frequent.

Evangeline nudges her and points to a swirling mass of dark energy. Setsuna watches a few demons disappear into it, but like the dying landscape, eventually the portal dissipates as well.

"What's going on?" Setsuna asks, watching the energy evaporate into thin air.

"Basically, the planet's going to shit. It's slowly getting pulled closer and closer to this universe's sun, and as it does, the water dries up and makes living impossible. We're all going to die, eventually."

"Why can't we just make –"

"We can't make more portals because, for reasons I'm sure you're not interested in, Hell's magic is slowly getting sapped away as well. There usually has to be magical energy on both sides of a portal for it to be created, and it's hard enough with the condition of Earth as it is. But, there _is_ one way."

Evangeline says it with finality and starts to pace as she continues her explanation, "If you can gather enough energy, you can potentially force your way to the other side. That's how the angels get to Earth; Heaven has a ridiculous amount of magic, and they harness it to create portals that open up to Earth even though the planet is near magic-less. But even then, they only last a little while. In our case," Evangeline gestures at the barren landscape, "With our planet's magic nearing Earth-levels, it's near impossible for anyone of even top-tier skill to create any inter-dimensional travel method that works."

"How does this work, then?" Setsuna asks, pointing at her bracelet.

"It works because I'm better than top-tier," the vampire responds with a smirk, "But even my magic is limited."

"This is all so confusing…"

Evangeline shrugs, not really concerned/ "It's not like you really have to know this. I mean, most angels don't even know half the things I'm telling you. Their own history is a secret to them. But anyway," she waves her hand to signal she's dismissing the topic, "Moving on…"

The vampire snaps her fingers and the fast-forwarded movie stops, pausing on a frozen frame of time for a second until the scene changes again. They're standing in a hospital room, much to Setsuna's discontent, although this particular area is a lot less unnerving. She looks around at all the babies in the nursery, covered in blue and pink blankets, and raises an eyebrow at Evangeline.

"That one," the blonde points at a baby with big brown eyes and a pink blanket over her torso. "That's Konoka."

_That's Konoka!?_ Setsuna bites her lip to keep from reacting in an embarrassing fashion, but the words slip out anyway.

"She's… so cute…"

"Take a closer look," Evangeline mutters, passing one hand in front of the Setsuna's face. An incredibly bright, whitish-yellow light burns her eyes and she closes them to avoid the pain.

"What _is_ that?" She asks, putting her hands over her eyes to help block out the rays. "It's like staring into the sun."

"That's her magical energy," Evangeline explains, not seeming to have the same retina-scorching problem as Setsuna. "Ridiculous, isn't it?"

The vampire taps Setsuna to let her know it's alright to open her eyes again.

"She has that much power?" It's hard for her to imagine that, looking at this tiny pink baby in front of her. Not that the silly adult version makes much more sense either.

"Enough energy to open as many portals as it takes for demons to evacuate Hell. The angels will come after us, of course; we'll have to blend in or hide once we get to Earth. I'll admit it's a temporary fix and a shitty existence, but it's better than extinction."

"But I still don't understand. Why do they want us extinct?"

"Because they're selfish, delusional, power-hungry pieces of _crap_!" Evangeline shouts, throwing her hands up in exasperation. Almost as if hearing her, the baby begins to cry. The vampire rolls her eyes, muttering something about 'obnoxious children,' before bringing them back to Hell. She takes a deep breath and a few minutes to calm down before speaking again. "There's a lot of other details, but it's probably best if you don't know. Some angels have ways of reading your mind, and there's no way _you_ can learn to protect your thoughts."

"That's okay," Setsuna knows the other woman is right. She's never had a talent for magic, after all. "And now that I know all that, my mission makes a lot more sense."

"Good. Just remember what I told you before you left, and you'll be fine."

Setsuna nods, recalling her short mission briefing, "Get to Earth, then get as close as possible to Konoka so that our souls will be linked, then kill her," she repeats, then looks to Evangeline for approval.

"Good work," Evangeline humors her desire for praise, even going so far as to float up and pat the girl on the head. Setsuna smiles but keeps her eyes on the floor. She enjoys the compliments, but she's still not sure how to react to them.

"It – it's nothing," she says.

"It's hardly _nothing_, and I know the rest of our kind will agree with me," Evangeline continues. "When it's all said and done, you'll be a hero. Don't forget that."

"I won't."

It'd be impossible _to_ forget. The idea of being able to live her life without pain and prosecution is all she's ever wanted, besides Evangeline's friendship. _I'll do it for sure,_ Setsuna thinks determinedly. _No matter what_.

"Well, if that's the case, then I think we're all done here. Keeping this world up is getting tiresome," Evangeline reaches up and stands on her toes in a full-bodied stretch. "I'll be busy with that scroll for a few days, so you likely won't hear from me. Let me know if anything important happens. Other than that…"

The world in front of Setsuna fades away along with the image of Evangeline.

"Have fun," the vampire's disembodied echoes in the empty space. Then: blackness.

**XXX**

After waking from her dream with renewed determination, Setsuna decides to focus more on getting closer to Konoka. She's not sure if it's been fun so far, exactly, except maybe the plane trip. Everything else seems to have ended in some sort of unfortunate shenanigans, but now she's determined to have a good time, damnit.

Except two things are preventing her from doing that. The first is that she has no idea how to have fun with someone, or at all, for that matter. Before this trip her only form of entertainment had been video games.

Going off that line of reasoning, they spend two days working their way through Heavy Rain and FarCry 3 at Setsuna's suggestion, but after that they both lose interest. On the third day Setsuna has resorted to trying to Google an answer up, but the second worry arises right about that time, namely in the form of Konoka's dad.

Konoka had apparently decided to mail the letter Tsuruko had given her. Eishun received it, read its contents, and promptly called his daughter to berate her over an issue that, to Konoka, seems completely unnecessary and ridiculous. Sure, Setsuna is a little odd, and sure, she _did_ have a strange conversation with her old teacher on the phone the other day – Konoka hadn't _meant_ to eavesdrop, but snippets of the conversation had drifted in through the open window. She's pretty sure she heard the word _kill_, among other things, but really, who hasn't sarcastically said they wanted to kill someone before? Eishun's worry seems incredibly superfluous, almost to the point of being plain superstitious.

"For the last time dad," Konoka whisper-yells at him over the phone, "I'm way too old for you to be telling me who I can and can't hang out with! Do you even have a real reason to dislike Setsuna? She hasn't _done_ _anything_!"

Eishun has one very real reason to dislike Setsuna, but he can't tell Konoka about that. Tsuruko's letter had more or less confirmed his suspicions, but it's difficult to tell your daughter she might be hanging out with a demon who's likely putting her in mortal danger without actually, you know, _telling_ her as much.

"I didn't like her," He replies curtly. "She was strange and ill-mannered. You shouldn't hang out with people like that, Konoka, you should find friends more suitable for your nature –"

"What, so you don't like her because she's not rich or something?! That's totally stupid, and even if I decided to not be friends with her anymore – which I won't, by the way – how could I find people like that with you constantly sabotaging my pathetic excuse for a social life!"

Eishun sighs and runs a hand through his hair, trying to calm himself down. A part of him knows she's right about his behavior, but it's hard not to want to keep Konoka under lock and key for her own safety. There are half-a-dozen reasons someone might want to harm her: her money, her position with the company, her soul, _and to get to me_, he thinks with frustration. He doesn't expect her to understand that though; she's only half-aware of those things, and her sheltered life seems to have given her the idea that the dangers aren't real. _I overdid it a bit,_ Eishun acknowledges solemnly. _My attempts to protect her just made her think I'm being paranoid_. Which might be true, at least a little bit, but as long as she remains such a tempting target, he can't simply let her do as she wants. Especially now, with her befriending someone so potentially dangerous.

"Konoka, I only worry because I love you," He says, more subdued now. He can hear her _hmph_ in recognition. "You hardly know this girl, and it wouldn't be that unlikely for someone to come along and take advantage of your kindness. She could be using you for money, or maybe she wants a promotion or something, or she could be dangerous –"

"Dad, if I lived thinking like that I wouldn't speak to anyone, _ever_. It's not fair to assume that about Setsuna! She's been perfectly nice to me, and she even helped me out in a conference a few days ago. Just give her a chance, daddy," Konoka pleads through the phone, knowing full well how hard it is for Eishun to say no to her. "You have to learn to trust people eventually."

He scratches the back of his head nervously. _If only it were that simple_.

"Okay, fine," He acquiesces, already thinking about how soon he can get a guard from the Shinmeiryuu to tail her. If she won't listen, then he'll have to protect her quietly this time, he decides. "But you have to promise to call me every night before bed, and if I don't hear from you I'll assume the worst. And if something happens, you have to cut ties with her immediately, you understand?"

"Alright, alright," She mutters, once again feeling like a child. "I'll keep you updated on any _evil_ rituals or murders I find out she's committing," Konoka finishes sarcastically, not knowing those are the exact two things Eishun is worried about.

"Thank you," He replies, not at all fazed by her tone. "I'll talk to you tonight, okay?"

"Okay dad, love you. Talk to you soon."

Konoka hangs up the phone and tosses it into her nightstand drawer, shutting it angrily. She flops down on her bed, letting out a loud _ugh_ of frustration in the process. Her angry voice comes muffled through the mattress.

"Can you believe that? He's so dramatic all the time." She turns over on her back and glares at the ceiling. "Not everyone I meet is out to get me. I don't know why he can't seem to get that through his stubborn skull."

"He seems to care about you a lot. I don't blame him for not trusting me, if that's what you're worried about," Setsuna replies, having heard pieces of Eishun's sentences through the receiver. It's definitely not good that he seems more or less sure of her identity now, but the worst he can do is get someone to tail her. She doubts he would do something as traumatic as have her killed while Konoka is around at least, and if he's waiting until Setsuna does something threatening before making a move of his own, he'll be sorely disappointed anyway. If everything goes according to plan, by the time Eishun realizes his daughter's in danger, she'll already be dead.

A guard could be trouble though, assuming he's going to hire one. If it's a Shinmeiryuu warrior – and hopefully not the same one she fought the other day – all the worse. It would be difficult to make calls to Evangeline outside of the room, she wouldn't be able to pull out her pactio cards unless she was in complete isolation, and screw it all if she gets sent on another mission like the museum fiasco.

_I can't do much about it though, _she thinks a bit disappointedly. _But I should have at least a day before he can arrange for that._

Not that she's going to be able to complete her mission in a day or anything, but at least she'll be able to tell Evangeline and Mana about this new turn of events. She's just about to excuse herself and do just that when Konoka, who had been staring pensively at some point in space, sits up suddenly.

"This is seriously pissing me off. We should do something fun," she announces, and while the timing is a bit frustrating, that _is_ what Setsuna had been planning for anyway. And maybe now she won't have to be the one that decides on the activity.

"What should we do?"

"Let's…!" Konoka's enthusiasm seems to die a bit, but after a moment she perks up again. "How about we go shopping? I can buy you some going-out clothes, since you don't have any."

Her dad's voice appears suddenly in her head: _'She could be using you for money, or maybe she wants a promotion –'_ and Konoka promptly squashes it.

"I'll buy you _so many clothes_," Konoka growls out defiantly, once again glaring at a point in space. Setsuna looks uneasily at the pissed off girl in front of her.

"That… sounds good. I can buy them too, if you want. I don't mind spending money or anything…"

"No! I insist."

"If you're sure…"

Konoka makes it clear that she won't have it any other way and bounces off her bed to get ready. Setsuna grabs a pair of cargo shorts and a t-shirt from her dresser and shoves the compact, her pactio cards, and her phone in the various pockets. _I'll have to find some privacy to use these before the day's over,_ she thinks, absently rubbing one of the laminate cards between her thumb and forefinger.

After a quick phone call, Ayaka informs them there's an upscale shopping center on Shijo Street at a walkable distance from their hotel. Konoka had been more interested in going to some of the smaller local places, but this time of day they'd probably be way more crowded, and she's not in the mood to navigate through heavy people traffic.

They leave in pretty good spirits, chatting idly and pausing every now and again to point out a restaurant or building of particular interest. It's a little under thirty minutes to get there, and the weather is nice, so it's easy for Setsuna to forget her troubles and actually have a good time for once.

Or it _would've_ been, if there wasn't something bothering her. There had been a few people outside the hotel when they'd left – no one conspicuous looking or anything, just a few people going in and out, and one man in a gray, long-sleeved shirt smoking a cigarette. The only reason Setsuna had even noticed him was because of the smoke, but other than that, she hadn't thought much of him.

Until he started following them. They'd only gone about thirty paces away before he'd pushed himself off the side of the hotel he'd been leaning on and casually started walking behind them, always a good distance away, and never in any great hurry. It wouldn't be so odd for him to be heading in the same direction as them – Shijo Street is a popular shopping area – but as she walks, Setsuna can feel him staring at the back of her head. After twenty-five minutes she's now positive he's following them, and it's hard to relax under the surveillance.

_How did Eishun get someone out here so quickly?_

Fiddling with the compact in her pocket, Setsuna knows she won't have the chance to use it any time soon. Even if she excuses herself to the bathroom or something, this guy could have any number of powers – shape shifter, mind reader, x-ray vision – and there's no way for her to tell. If he's there to keep an eye on her, though, that gives her plenty of time to watch him as well.

"Seeetsuuuunaaaa!" Konoka waves a hand in front of her friend's face. "Are you in there?"

"Wha –" Setsuna blinks a couple of times to refocus herself. "I'm sorry," she apologizes, blushing at her own unawareness.

"That's okay Silly. What were you spacing out about?"

"Nothing important. Maybe I'm getting hungry or something." It's a lame excuse, but it's better than having to come up with a more thorough one.

"Should we get something to eat?"

"Maybe in a little while. I don't go shopping very often, so I was thinking maybe you could lead me around?"

Konoka seems to like that idea, and while Setsuna appreciates the direction, she hadn't realized admitting her inexperience also meant volunteering to be Konoka's personal doll. They're on their second department store and Konoka's picked out four different outfits for her friend to try, and Setsuna disappears into the dressing room and comes back out to flaunt whichever look was given to her. It feels a bit unnecessary to have to change clothes so many times, but Konoka seems to be having fun, and it feels good to know she's the cause of it.

"I hope you don't mind me using you like a Barbie doll. Not that you look anything like one," Konoka amends, walking up to Setsuna and looking her up and down with a critical eye. The vaguely, maybe half-Asian features and dark hair are strictly non-Barbie. _She's definitely skinny enough though_, Konoka thinks with maybe a little jealousy. _But for some reason these clothes just don't seem to go. _She adjusts the shirt and frowns at the jeans, fully engrossed in her task.

The man that'd been following them lingers outside the dressing room, and when Setsuna steps out to model her clothes she sometimes sees him walking around in the store, pretending to look at things and politely declining help from the salespeople.

"I think I'm going about this wrong," Konoka admits after she gives up on her adjustments. "I mean, your figure's really nice, and these clothes _do_ make you look super cute… But they don't suit you. Maybe it's because I'm too used to seeing you in men's clothes," she sighs, plopping down in one of the chairs by the mirrors to think.

"Maybe I should just wear men's clothes then. They're definitely not as confining," Setsuna says with a frown, pulling uncomfortably at the hem of the skin-tight v-neck she'd donned.

"That's true, but you already look really young. I feel like if I put you in boy's clothes… well, I'll give it a try anyway. Wait here, okay?"

Konoka gets up and disappears into the racks of clothes. She grabs a plain black t-shirt and a fitted, button up, dark blue and white plaid shirt, holding them up and eyeing them critically. _This is probably going to look kind of silly on her, _she thinks, smiling at the image in her head. She carries them regardless, and on her way back she grabs a pair of dark jeans.

"You have good taste."

She turns around to see the man who'd spoken to her; an average looking, dark-haired guy in a long sleeved grey shirt.

"Thank you," she smiles politely, fully intent on heading back to the dressing room. He cuts her off with a question though, forcing her to stop and talk to him for a moment longer, as social rules dictate.

"Shopping for a boyfriend?"

"Ah no, actually," her hand comes up behind her head nervously as she tries to figure out if he's hitting on her or not.

"…Girlfriend, then?" There's an amused smirk on his face, and Konoka's eyes widen at the question.

"N – no, I'm not a – she's just a friend," she stutters, obviously flustered. "If you don't mind, she's waiting for me."

Without giving him a chance to reply, she steps past him and into the dressing room. _What a weirdo_, she thinks, but brightens when she sees Setsuna.

"Here you go. It's probably going to look kind of awkward, but it's worth a try," Konoka tosses the clothes to her friend. "I'm going to go grab another color while you try those on."

She disappears again, and Setsuna stares distrustfully at the clothes. But they look more comfortable, at least, so she heads into the dressing room. It doesn't take her long to throw them on, and she leaves the shirt buttons open, knowing by this point that Konoka will just mess with them anyway. _This looks pretty good… I think,_ she notes, staring passively at the mirror.

After fifteen minutes she starts to wonder where Konoka has gone off too. She considers whether or not to put her other clothes back on, but then, she'd probably just have to change back into these anyway when she finds the other girl. Opting not to bother, she only grabs her things from the pockets of her cargo shorts before stepping out of the dressing room to scan the now crowded store for Konoka. At first, through the large amount of shoppers, it doesn't look like she's there, but after a minute she spots her by the side exit leading out of the mall. With the man that'd been following them.

_That's weird. I doubt Eishun would've told him to show himself like that…_

Setsuna watches for a moment longer, an eery feeling starting to make her nervous. He's leaning in pretty close to her, and although he's smiling while he talks, it doesn't look like he's speaking English. She's no lip reader, but to focus and not be able to pick up one discernable word is… odd. Not to mention, Konoka isn't responding whatsoever. In fact, her eyes are glazed over, and when the guy turns to leave she follows after him with stiff, controlled movements.

_Something's definitely wrong,_ Setsuna thinks, knowing full well Konoka wouldn't leave her in the store by herself. She walks briskly up to the exit and passes through the doors, ignoring the alarms going off behind her. Looking around the parking lot, she spots the duo getting into an inconspicuous black Toyota, and she pulls out her phone to take the license plate number.

"Hey! Excuse me!"

Setsuna turns around and frowns at the department store employee that'd followed her out there. He stands up a bit straighter at her annoyed look, and he continues on in accented English, "You're going to have to pay for those, ma'am."

Setsuna looks down at the clothes she'd donned, then back to the guy. "How much?"

"I don't know ma'am, I'd have to ring it up –"

"Here," she opens her wallet and pulls out two hundred dollars in cash. "This is all my money."

"H- hey, wait a –"

Setsuna doesn't wait around and instead makes a dash for where the car is headed. There's no way she can keep up with it on foot, even with the traffic and red lights, but maybe she can at least see where it's headed. She makes it to the intersection just as the light turns green and the driver speeds off, but not before making eye contact with him through the rearview mirror. When he realizes she's looking, his serious expression changes and he smiles at her mockingly, even throwing a wave out the window before disappearing around a corner. She takes note of the street he turned on and stops running.

_Do I call the police? Is that even considered a kidnapping…?_

To make matters worse, at this point Setsuna's fairly sure the guy isn't human, let alone Shinmeiryuu. She grabs her pactio card out of her thankfully functional jeans pocket and holds it up to her head, not caring about how strange it looks.

_Mana? Are you there?_

There's a pause, and then.

_**What's wrong?**_

Setsuna lets out a breath she hadn't known she was holding, glad to know she at least has some reliable advice now.

_I think Konoka just got kidnapped._

_**What? By who? Where?**_

_I don't know who, and at the mall,_ Setsuna responds, realizing how useless that probably sounds to the other girl. As expected, Mana isn't pleased by the lack of details.

_**Tell me what happened.**_

_There was this guy following us, and I thought he was with the Shinmeiryuu since Konoka's dad may know who I am now –_

_**He **_**what?**

_That's not important right now!_ Setsuna snaps, surprising herself and Mana in the process. The gunman reflexively raises an eyebrow. Setsuna had always been painfully mindful of the difference in their positions of power, and she'd certainly never yelled at her before.

_She might be in danger,_ Setsuna continues, ignoring the other girl's lack of response. _I got a license plate number, but I'm not sure I should call the police. He doesn't seem human; I think he used a spell to mind-control her or something._

Mana considers that. It'd be pretty unlikely for an angel to kidnap Konoka. What would be the purpose? They could want to take her soul to Heaven, she supposes, but then why not kill her immediately? And even then, angels have strict rules about doing things like that – something about messing with some universal balance or other. So a demon, maybe? But why? It isn't public knowledge who Konoka is in the demon world; there'd be no reason to target her specifically without that information. Unless…

_**Eishun.**_

_What?_

_**It's probably a demon out for revenge or extortion against her father; he was a pro-demon slayer along with Nagi back in his younger days. This wouldn't be the first time someone's gone after him, but as far as I know, no one's ever tried to use his daughter to do it.**_

_So how can I help her? _Setsuna asks impatiently.

_**Are you sure you want to?**_

_What do you mean?_

_**I mean that if he kills her, all you have to do is be close by. This might be a good opportunity for you to take her soul yourself –**_

_I'm not ready for her to die yet!_ Setsuna snaps again, growing increasingly irritated by the amount of time this is taking. Mana narrows her eyes in suspicion.

_**You do mean because of the mission, right?**_

_Of course_._ I don't think we're close enough for me to be able to do that yet._

Setsuna realizes that hadn't been what she meant at all, but she doesn't dwell on it. There are more important things to do right now.

_So can you help me?_

_**Read out the license plate number and I can probably track him.**_

Setsuna does just that and taps her foot against the sidewalk while she waits for Mana to get back to her. After nearly half an hour – _thirty whole minutes, damnit_ – the gunman's voice echoes in her head.

_**The car is registered to a guy named Shiro Miyasashi. I'm going to give you his address.**_

_Thanks_, Setsuna replies after plugging the street name into her phone's GPS. She tells Mana she'll keep her updated before putting the card back into her pocket, but there's another problem. According to her GPS, the guy lives on the southeastern edge of the Yamashina Ward, about six miles away and at least two hours of a walk, if she could even manage to cut a path directly there. _And_ she'd just given all her cash to that store employee.

Biting her lip, she glances back at the mall. _It'd be faster to take a cab,_ she decides, and not having another choice, goes back inside to find an ATM.

**XXX**

Konoka has no idea how she got here.

One minute she'd been shopping for clothes for Setsuna, and the next she'd opened her eyes and found herself smack dab in the middle of a horror movie scene.

_Who the hell has jail cells in their house?!_ She asks herself angrily, pulling vainly at the bars. _Psychopaths, rapists, and murderers, probably,_ she answers herself, feeling the chill of fear sneak its way up her spine. _Okay, Konoka, think. You can get out of this._

Presumably she'd been driven somewhere, but for some reason or another, she doesn't remember any of the trip. She'd regained consciousness just as she was carried into a nice looking house with wooden floors and big windows, but when she'd tried to move she'd found her hands and feet tied up with rope. Not wanting to let her would-be murderer know she was aware yet, in case he decided to reveal something important, she'd kept her eyes half-open but hadn't said anything.

Unfortunately, he hadn't talked to himself or made a phone call to any conspirators like what usually happens in the movies. Instead he'd carried her upstairs and opened up the door to this cell, dropping her rather painfully in the middle of it. He'd been kind enough to untie her before locking her in, and Konoka had briefly entertained the idea of trying to hit him and escaping that way. That idea quickly faded with the realization that she'd probably just earn herself a beating, though. She has no fighting experience whatsoever, and she'd be up against someone bigger and stronger. Konoka had only seen someone her size win such a one-sided fight once before –

_Setsuna! She'll realize I'm missing and call the police_, Konoka smiles at the thought, but as the details work themselves through her brain her happiness quickly dissipates. _Except she probably didn't see this guy knock me out or whatever… She'd have no idea where to look, and that means the police wouldn't either. They probably wouldn't even start searching right away_.

In the U.S. she'd have to be missing for twenty-four hours before a search would actually get started, and if the same is true in Japan, well, that's a lot of hours. Plenty of things could happen to her in that time period, depending on what this guy wants with her. Immediately, her imagination conjures every bad thing that could possibly happen in vivid imagery, and she bites her tongue to get rid of the pictures in her brain.

_That's not going to happen_, she tells herself firmly, but she still flinches at the sound of footsteps coming up the stairs, and the guy she'd met at the mall earlier opens the door and walks through.

"You?" She says before she can stop herself, and he stares at her blankly for a moment before responding.

"Yes, me. Sorry to keep you here under such shitty conditions. Oh, wait," he smiles at her, and Konoka instinctively backs away, "No I'm not."

"Why- why are you doing this? What do you want?" She tries not to think about how heroines in scary movies always say that before they get killed.

"What do I want…?" He repeats slowly, sauntering toward Konoka's cell. He reaches the bars and leans against them, watching her from between the gaps. "I want you to die. Slowly, and painfully," he says finally, and Konoka tries to withhold the tidal wave of sheer panic in her stomach.

He watches her trying not to react and smiles again, obviously pleased by her fear. "I want to skin you alive and shred the meat from your bones while you scream and beg for me to end your life because it hurts so much. But I won't kill you right away," he continues, keeping eye contact with her. His grin stretches when he sees the tears in her eyes. "I'm going to let you feel the whole thing. I'm going to drain you of your blood and watch you die, slowly and agonizingly, but maybe before all that I'll have some fun with your body while it's still warm. I'm not particularly interested, but it'll make for good sound effects, don't you think?"

Konoka berates herself for being slightly insulted by that part.

"Sound effects?" She asks, bringing her legs together nervously. He sees her do it and laughs at her, making her blush and avert her eyes in both embarrassment and anger.

"Yes, sound effects. I would much rather do it in person, but this will have to do." He gestures to the corner of Konoka's cell, and she turns around and spots the blinking red light there: a video camera.

"In person with who? I- I don't understand," she mumbles, looking back and forth between the man and the camera.

"With your father, of course."

"My _dad_?! Is this for money then? I can pay you anything you want if you just –"

"I don't give a shit about money," he snaps at her, banging his fist against the frame of the cell. "I want your dad to suffer. I want to hurt the thing he loves the most. I'm going to record our time together, and then I'm going to let him know your dead. Maybe I'll send him a piece of your body – an eyelid, maybe, or an ear? Fingers are awfully boring," he muses out loud, pacing slowly outside the cell, and Konoka puts a hand on her face as if trying to protect it. "And _then_, when he comes for me, I'm going to sit him down and show him the video. I'm going to break his spirit, and then I'm going to kill him, and then I'm going to find a way to drag him to Hell with me and torture him forever. Doesn't that sound great?"

"You're delusional," Konoka manages to choke out, horrified. "My dad's never done anything to you."

"On the contrary, _you're _delusional. Of course, you wouldn't know that, being delusional and all, but that's okay. I don't give a shit about what happens to _you_, really."

Konoka can feel the pit of dread in her stomach spreading throughout the rest of her body, rendering her limbs immobile as realization sinks in and she stares wide-eyed at her captor. _I'm not getting out of this_, she thinks, starting to tremble, _I'm going to get tortured and die and my body's going to get chopped to pieces…_

An overwhelming wave of nausea hits her; she blinks and is suddenly bent forward on her knees, dry heaving and spitting on the floor. _Oh my God, I'm going to die. I'm going to die I'm going to dieI'mgoingtodieI'mgoingtodie –_

The man, Shiro, watches her come to terms with her fate. He feels no sympathy even when the heaving turns to sobbing and Konoka curls into a ball on the floor, shaking all over. Still, there's a pang of familiarity about it that has him turning his head away to glare at the wall.

That's what his wife looked like before Eishun killed her, after all.

It wasn't his original intention to kill the man's daughter. Rather, the last time he'd seen Eishun, he'd been living in Japan, so naturally Shiro had manifested himself here and gone out to find him – only to be told the Shinmeiryuu master had moved to the U.S. Getting here had been hard enough, but arriving without being killed by angels or humans within the first two weeks just to find out he'd gotten the location wrong… it'd dealt a serious blow to his psyche. Only his thoughts of revenge kept him on this planet as he dodged the various people and forces that would kill him simply for what he is.

Just like Eishun had killed him and his wife.

They'd come to Earth hoping to escape the ravaging hardships of their own planet; he wasn't high up enough on the power hierarchy in Hell to keep him and his wife safe from the violent, blackmailing bastards he called his seniors. Sick of the way he was mistreated, and sick of watching his wife suffer, he did what he had to; Shiro stole a powerful magical item and transported himself and his wife to Earth. It was a gamble though. If his superiors found out – and they would – and the two of them somehow ended up back in Hell… well, if they thought their lives were bad before, he knew it could be much, _much_ worse.

Except, apparently, that wasn't a good enough reason for people like Eishun, who believed he must be there to torment humans. But Shiro could care less about humans – or he didn't before, anyway, until he'd been hunted down by them. He'd tried to explain why they were there, but they hadn't listened, even when his wife had pleaded to let them stay.

"They're obviously lying!" One of Eishun's friends had said, pointing an accusing finger and nudging the swordsman in the shoulder while Shiro watched on, terrified. He knew he'd have no chance against the four swordsmen that had shown up, especially in a human body and without a weapon.

So without further ado, he'd watched his wife's soul get condemned, and then his own.

The memories still make him shake with rage. As he'd expected, what they'd returned to in Hell was far worse than what they'd left. And his wife…

Shiro glares at the sobbing girl in front of him.

"Humans are all the same," he mutters. "Enjoy the last ten minutes of your pain free life. I'll be right back."

The sobs intensify behind him as he walks away, but he takes pleasure in them. What this girl suffers won't even be close to what he and his wife went through; the amount of torture she can endure is limited by her human body, and when she dies, her soul will likely go somewhere far more pleasant. He and his wife hadn't had that luxury.

A couple of minutes after the door closes behind him, Konoka manages to stop crying long enough to take another look around. Like the first time, the situation doesn't look very promising. There _is _a window, but it's closed and on the wall by the door, outside of her cell.

Frustrated, she tries the bars again, pulling desperately with every ounce of strength in her body, but they don't budge. Standing back and taking a breath to calm herself, she checks her pockets. Her phone is gone, but he'd left her wallet. _He wasn't kidding when he said he doesn't care about money._ She bites her lip and stares at the cash and credit cards. They were her only leverage against this guy, and if he doesn't want them, she's got nothing. Konoka rifles through her clutch, trying to find anything at all that could get her out of this situation.

Halfway through searching through its contents – a tube of lip gloss, some coins, hair ties – she lets out a frustrated growl and shoves it back in her pocket. _What the hell am I thinking? I'm not MacGyver._

That being said, with walls on three sides and bars on the other, she's now officially out of options. Konoka can feel the tears starting again and she slides down the wall of her cell and leans her head back against the wood, staring at nothing.

"Dad was right," she mumbles, laughing humorlessly. _I should've been more careful_. But how was she supposed to know? She doesn't remember even putting herself in a vulnerable situation; she'd been at a crowded mall, in broad daylight, shopping with Setsuna.

She clenches her fists at the thought of her friend. _We were just starting to get close_, _and now… _Now she's going to hear the news two days from now that her only friend died in a horrific homicide. Konoka swallows her panic; freaking out won't help anything. She forces her thoughts anywhere but her impending doom, and they wander back to Setsuna.

_I wonder if she's looking for me… _Her imagination spirals briefly because of her hopeless predicament; a short clip plays in her mind involving Setsuna bursting through the door, kicking the guy's ass, and effectively sweeping her off her feet and out of the house to safety. As soon as the images fade Konoka can't help but laugh at her own absurdity. _She's just a girl, and this isn't a movie, you idiot._

There's no way she'd find Konoka even if she _is_ looking, and people don't normally put their own lives in danger on the off chance they might be able to rescue someone. That's the job of firemen and policemen and military – not middle class human resources workers from big business.

_How useless am I?_ She scoffs at herself, kicking her clutch to the other side of her cell and glaring at it. _I get myself in a mess and all I can do is sit here and hope that someone cares enough to bail me out of it – Setsuna, no less._ _But there's no way in hell…_ she sighs, putting her face in her hands in resignation. _It was a nice thought though._

She's just about ready to bid the world farewell when she hears movement.

Konoka's head snaps up at the creaking of the door, and she takes a deep breath and tries to accept death with dignity, and grace, and _Shitshitshitshit I'm going to die –_

It's not Shiro that walks in, however, and Konoka's jaw drops when she sees Setsuna's face peaking around the door.

"No freaking way," she mutters in disbelief. Setsuna glances behind her before stepping into the room and quietly shutting the door. A million things run through Konoka's mind, and the seriousness of the situation comes back to her full force. "You – you have to leave," she says quietly, not wanting to alert her would-be murderer. "This guy's crazy, he's going to kill us both –"

"I'm not leaving without you." Setsuna's tone carries an air of finality, and there's determination in her eyes that Konoka isn't used to seeing. In fact, Konoka's not used to seeing much of _any_ emotion on her friend's face, but she's not about to question it now. Setsuna stares at the bars of the cell, reaching out and testing their strength once before going to examine the lock.

"Do you have the keys?" Konoka asks hopefully.

"No. I saw them, but they were on a table with a bunch of hacksaws and knives, and he was standing right next to them."

Setsuna doesn't notice Konoka go pale at the mention of Shiro's tools. If she wasn't grateful for her friend's presence before – and she was – she's more than grateful now. A thousand ways to say thank you clog up her brain and can't quite make it out of her mouth, and she decides to save them for later. _If there's a later_. She has a good amount of faith in Setsuna after what she's seen, but training and all, the guy could easily be carrying a gun or any other weapon on him. And before all that, there's one very important detail they need to address.

"The bars aren't breakable," Konoka whispers, interrupting Setsuna's attempt to simply pry them off the cell. "There's no way –"

"I'll _find_ one, then."

"I… oh…."

Konoka stands there, watching Setsuna try in vain to bend steel bars for her. _Of course it's not going to work_, she thinks, but there's something so convincing about the way Setsuna says it, and there's a tinge of desperation in her slightly shaky hands that makes Konoka think twice about convincing her savior of the impossibility of it all.

So she stands there, at a loss for words at being confronted with this… _person_. Certainly no one she's used to seeing, because Setsuna's not emotional – not like this. She hadn't even flinched when she'd recounted those horrible things that'd happened to her as a kid; but now, somehow, there's something about her that's different. Konoka would almost call it an aura, if she were more into the supernatural, but even as she racks her brain for something more reasonable, that's the only word that seems to fit.

But even besides that intangible feeling, Konoka watches Setsuna grit her teeth, and her muscles flex within the sleeves of the plaid shirt – _those clothes look good after all_ – and whatever it is that's changed about the girl in the last forty-five seconds makes Konoka swallow a ball of nervous butterflies that has nothing at all to do with being trapped in a homicidal maniac's house.

And the _aura_, or whatever it is, which similarly has nothing and everything to do with Konoka's stomach elevator-diving into her throat, has her involuntarily taking a step back, because even though she doesn't know what's happening in front of her, she can tell it's about to culminate into _something_ –

_SCREEEE –_

Konoka has to cover her ears at the sound of metal grinding ever-so-conspicuously on metal, but with five more seconds and a grunt from Setsuna, her jaw drops as the girl in front of her literally tears the door off its hinges – and the lock, heavy duty chains and all, breaks to pieces in front of her.

"How… how the hell did you –"

"No time!" Setsuna whispers harshly, and they both hear the footsteps from downstairs. She spots the window and grabs Konoka by the wrist, leading her over to it. "Go to the roof. I'll call you down when it's safe."

"But what about you –"

"I'll be fine."

"How can you be sure?" Konoka turns around, halfway out the window and hands clasped on the gutter, but suddenly defiant. "What if you die?"

Setsuna glances at the door then back at Konoka, knowing she doesn't have much time before Shiro bursts into the room. Without reservations she puts her hands under Konoka's butt, ignoring the _eep_ of surprise, and practically throws the girl on the roof.

"I'll be fine, I promise," Setsuna says again after catching Konoka's eyes just long enough to notice the fear. "I _can't_ die."

Konoka's incredulity is obvious in her reply. "What does that even mean?!"

With the other girl is safely on the roof, Setsuna sticks her head out the window and looks up, trying to think of something quick and reassuring to say. Stuck between various lies, a couple of different realities, and her own personal thoughts, she goes for a modified truth: "If he kills me then I won't get to be close to you anymore. So I _can't_ die."

Konoka stares down from the roof, examining her friend's face and trying to decipher the nonchalant comment.

Setsuna's words make no sense at all, of course; the statement holds no weight in a real life or death situation. It's more something one would say in an anime or a TV show, or just to be silly and sarcastic – it's a line you'd deliver with a cheeky smile and wink, and whoever it was thrown at would roll their eyes and put their hands on their hips and say something more realistic. That's what _should_ happen, at least.

Except that Setsuna had said it with a completely straight face, voice laced with what Konoka is sure the other girl hoped was reassurance but was actually more like confidence, and with all the humor of a brown paper bag. That is to say, she _actually_ _means_ that their being together is her fundamental reason to stay alive.

And in the wake of that seriousness, where Konoka should be worried and pissed off and demanding a promise, she's instead shocked into silence as Setsuna disappears back into the room and closes the window behind her, leaving Konoka on the roof with no company but the weight of Setsuna's words and her own fervent blush.

_I wonder if I said something wrong_, Setsuna thinks briefly, Konoka's strange expression lingering in her vision for a moment. Her next thought is that she's surprised it's taking Shiro this long to get to them, but of course, that was just jinxing it. The door swings open and he glances first at the cell, eyes widening in surprise when his line of sight falls on the mangled door, and then finally his gaze rests on Setsuna standing by the window.

"How did you –" He starts, but stops himself. There's a moment of recognition, and when he looks at her again his expression is different. "An angel?"

"Not quite," Setsuna responds, keeping a wary eye on him as he paces slowly in front of her, keeping his distance. There's a machete in his right hand that's making her pretty nervous, and she wonders if she should lie to him or not.

"One like me, then?" He asks, maybe a bit hopeful. His fingers curl and uncurl around the handle of his weapon as he waits for a response.

"Um. Kind of."

"So why not help me then? You _do_ know who her father is, don't you?"

"Yes…" she trails off, still trying to decide if a fight can be avoided or not. "I'm actually under orders from Lord Animus and one of his personal guards. I'm going to take care of it, just not yet."

"Lord Animus?" Shiro's eyes narrow and his pacing stops. "_You _know him? Who exactly are you?"

_That's a great question_, Setsuna thinks. At the moment she's a lot of people: half-demon, guardian angel, human, office worker, lackey…

"I work for him. I'm not supposed to say anything other than that."

"Then what's your position?"

Setsuna hesitates. She doesn't actually know the names of the ranks, she realizes.

"Sargent…?"

"I see," he replies thoughtfully, the muscles in his arms untensing. Setsuna almost lets out a sigh of relief, thinking she'd avoided violence for today, but suddenly she finds herself having to jump out of the way of the machete being thrown at her head.

It impales itself in the wall, and she scrambles to her feet again. Shiro walks calmly over to where she'd been standing and yanks his weapon out of the wood, cracking it in the process.

"You're lying. First of all, there's no way you'd be able to avoid the angels while being close to that girl." He examines the blade of the machete, running his fingers along the edge to wipe off the wooden splinters. "Secondly, that rank doesn't exist. And lastly," he lifts his gaze from the weapon to meet her eyes, and the rage on his face is undeniable, "Even if you're telling the truth, I'd kill you anyway."

Setsuna doesn't even have time to curse before he's swinging the blade at her neck. She ducks quickly and goes straight for the weak spot at his crotch, but one of his legs comes up and delivers a brutal kick square to her chest. Her eyes widen at the strength behind it, and her body goes flying backwards into the wall, her left shoulder taking most of the impact.

_He's way stronger than me_, she knows, flexing her fingers and trying to decide if her arm is dislocated or not. It hurts, but she can still use it. When he comes at her swinging again, movements quick and structured, she grabs his arm to slow him down. There's no chance she's going to be able to stop him that way, but she manages a quick uppercut with her left hand before he overpowers her, tossing her once again into the wall.

"You're not going to win," He says calmly, staring at her from across the room. "If you'd been a demon I would've killed you quickly, but since I'm not so sure anymore, I think I'll take my time."

Setsuna manages to get on her knees, barely avoiding being pinned to the wall by the machete. He strikes quickly downwards before she can get away though, and she pulls her legs out of the way - _better my arms than my legs _ - but feels the handle of the blade _slam_ into the back of her left wrist. She grits her teeth and doesn't cry out, but Shiro can tell by her frantic scrambling to get away from him that she's in a good amount of pain now.

In her desperate attempt for distance she kicks her right leg out behind her, and with no small amount of luck, catches him hard in the knee. Setsuna can feel the joint pop out of its socket and Shiro curses, hopping back on one leg.

"You'll pay for that," he growls out, glaring at her. "For that, and for everything else. I'm going to make you _suffer_."

"I haven't done anything to you!" Setsuna yells back in confusion, cradling her left wrist in her right hand. Unfortunately, the statement just seems to piss him off more.

"You have no _idea_ how much you've done to me," He snarls. "Angel or demon, you're partly responsible for what happened to me and my wife."

"What are you talking about?" Setsuna asks, mostly just to buy some time until she can think of a way to get out of this situation without dying.

"I'm talking about how that brat's father sent me and the woman I love back to Hell to be tortured. And _why_?" Shiro practically screams, gesticulating wildly even with the machete in his right hand. "For wanting a better life? For wanting a place to live that isn't a complete shithole? For wanting to be _happy_?"

He takes a deep breath and approaches her, and Setsuna backs up until she's pressed to the wall. She watches the machete warily, but it's his other hand that comes up to grab her by the neck.

"Do you know what it's like to watch someone you love get killed and abused over, and over, and over again?" His voice is strained in his efforts to keep himself from hysteria. "Tell me," He continues, leaning in closer, "What is your relationship with that girl?"

Setsuna tries to answer, but it comes out unintelligible thanks to the hand choking her throat. Shiro notices but doesn't relax his grip to hear her answer; he tries a different tactic instead.

"How would you feel if I killed her in front of you?"

Setsuna still can't answer, but the expression of panic and anger is enough of an admission. "Good," Shiro smiles at her, "I'm going to kill you two in front of each other. Then maybe you'll see."

He lifts the machete, planning to bash her in the face with the handle, but Setsuna, through all the numerous and creative tortures she'd encountered, knows that the one Shiro is describing is one she _never_ wants to experience. He's still holding her up against the wall by her neck, so she lifts both her knees to her chin and, back braced against the wall, kicks both her feet outward with more strength than she knew she had.

She sees the look of surprise on his face just as she makes impact, and he lets go of her and flies backward, hitting the wall on the opposite side. Setsuna was not prepared, however, for the wall she'd braced herself against to give way as well. There's a noisy _crack_, and all of a sudden she's on her back, hanging halfway from the second story, and facing the sky.

"S- Setsuna?" Konoka's face peers at her from the edge of the roof. "Is he gone?"

Setsuna opens her mouth to answer but snaps it shut again at the feel of Shiro grabbing her ankle. He starts dragging her back into the room and Setsuna scrambles to grab hold of something, fingers finding purchase on the edge of the broken wall. She can hear Konoka's alarmed voice yelling at her to get on the roof, but with one of her legs in his grasp, that's rather impossible. Setsuna lifts her other leg and kicks him in the face – once, twice – and finally he lets go of her ankle.

"Fine!" He shouts, "You wanna stay out there? Go ahead."

Setsuna has about two seconds to wonder what he means before she feels his hands on her legs again – both this time – and without another word or any time to react, he flips her out of the hole in the wall and two stories down.

There's no time to land gracefully. There's a brief thought process – _if I land on my legs they'll break, if I land on my back that might break, and my right arm is the only one uninjured now and I can't sacrifice that either, so – _and then she twists herself in mid-air, landing on her injured left shoulder and wrist, and rolling a bit to help with the impact.

But the pain is _excruciating_. Setsuna's fairly sure her left wrist is in pieces right now, and it feels like her organs slammed against her ribcage when she'd hit the ground. Her vision is blurry and it's only Konoka's scream that keeps her conscious and semi-lucid – enough so to notice Shiro jumping down after her, and landing quite a bit more gracefully.

Konoka watches him approach the injured Setsuna, who manages to get to her feet only to fall back down immediately. Konoka stares down at the ground, thoughts rushing and panicked. _I could try and get down, but I'd probably just get hurt or die and that won't help anything right now; but he's going to kill her if I don't do something, but what can I do? Damnitdamnitdamnit –_

"Setsuna, don't you dare die!" She screams frantically, "You promised!"

The voice comes in broken and static-y to Setsuna's pain addled mind, like it'd been delivered through bad reception. _Setsuna don't… die… promised… _

"Oh yeah," she whispers, staring at the sky and hearing Shiro's footsteps get closer, "I did, didn't I?"

Setsuna sighs tiredly. _It might be nice to just give up right now, but…_ With no small amount of effort she drags her tired body into a sitting position then struggles woozily onto her feet.

"You're going to fight me like that?" Shiro asks incredulously, looking her up and down.

Setsuna tries to move the fingers on her left hand and pain shoots up and down her arm, all the way to her shoulder, bringing her back to reality a little bit. "I'm going to try," she says tiredly.

Shiro stares at her for a moment, and if Setsuna had been more with-it right then, she might've seen the pity flash across his face. But she doesn't, and he charges her regardless, making an inward slash at her torso.

Almost lazily, Setsuna avoids the strike by falling forwards against Shiro's chest. Out of pure surprise he catches her, and she stands on her tiptoes and headbutts him right in the nose.

"What the _fuck_!" His hand goes up to his profusely bleeding face, and when it comes away covered in red he turns to Setsuna with renewed anger. Dropping the machete, he draws his right hand back and, too quickly for her to see exactly where he'd been aiming, punches like a loaded spring – right into her broken left shoulder.

She can't help the pained yell that rips its way out of her throat this time. Setsuna falls to her knees, clutching her shoulder, only to feel Shiro's fist connect with her once again – only this time it's in the face. Setsuna lets herself hit the ground this time, and she can see the blood from her nose stain the grass.

"That was for my face," she hears him say, and somehow still conscious, she watches his shoes walk away from her.

"This can't be happening," Konoka mumbles in disbelief, glancing wildly between Shiro and Setsuna. This is the logical ending, of course: that the bigger, stronger person with the weapon would win – but somehow this wasn't the ending Konoka had thought would actually happen. Because this, as it stands right now, means they're both going to die.

Her hands grip the edge of the gutter and she squeezes her eyes shut, trying to think of something, anything that could get them out of this. But with Setsuna down for the count and Shiro no doubt coming to get her, the only coherent thought in her head is _I can't believe I dragged her into this – why am I so useless?_

Shiro looks up at her from the ground and smiles. "You're next."

It's two words. Only two words, and not inherently provocative ones either, but they reach Setsuna's ears and her fingers dig into the dirt in anger. _How can he do this?_ He and his wife were tortured in front of each other, and so what? So that makes it okay for him to do the same thing, even while knowing first-hand how much pain it would cause? Shouldn't he be trying to stop this kind of thing from happening?

"It doesn't make any sense." Setsuna whispers, eyes narrowed in concentration as she tries to reason through this and comes up short. The equivalent would be her trying to torture everyone she'd ever met for some kind of twisted sense of revenge, and that thought had never even crossed her mind.

She might not understand his logic, but she does know it leads to him torturing other people, and Konoka no less. _Treat others as you want to be treated; that's what Evangeline said, right?_

The kind of suffering she knows Shiro has in store for them is the kind she would give almost anything to avoid again – the kind that she knows should never exist, not for her, and not for anyone else either. _So I'll make sure it doesn't, then._ Hypocrisy might be Shiro's modus operandi, but all it's doing is hurting the people around him. And Setsuna is, quite frankly, _tired_ of pain.

Besides, what Evangeline says, goes.

It's a struggle to even move her limbs, and it's even more of a struggle to do it quietly, but she manages. Setsuna stumbles to her feet, grabbing Shiro's abandoned machete along the way. He's standing and staring up at Konoka on the roof and saying things that don't quite reach Setsuna's ears. His hands are on his hips and Setsuna's sure there's a cocky grin on his face. She comes up behind him quietly, holding up a hand to keep Konoka from announcing her presence.

Just when she's in range, she makes eye contact with Konoka, her vision hazy with pain, and manages two words:

"Don't look."

Konoka covers her eyes just as Shiro spins around, and Setsuna swings the machete, catching him in the throat. Blood sprays on the right half of her face and she can see the blood pouring from the wound on his neck and the blood staining his shirt and the blood _everywhere_, and she's glad Konoka closed her eyes _because normal people probably aren't used to this._

People like her and Shiro though – this is their _life_. As if to attest to that fact, though he's bleeding out and dying quickly, one hand reaches out straight for her throat as if to tear it open with his bare hands. With the last of her strength and all of her anger, Setsuna drops the blade to punch him square in the chest. She hardly felt like she put any power into at all, so she's surprised to see him fly back and hit the wall of the house – but he doesn't stop there. Shiro's body flies straight through it, his limp corpse finally coming to a stop on top of his dining room table.

The wall, having had enough of this by now, decides now would be a great time to protest – by completely crumbling. Setsuna's wound-induced haze is broken by the sound of Konoka's scream as she comes tumbling from the roof, and without thinking or knowing or feeling, Setsuna sees the scenery moving, and the disjointed thought that _I must be running_ goes through her head.

She catches Konoka in her good arm and the weight sends them both to the ground where they come to a rolling stop.

There's a brief pause, and Konoka stares half at Setsuna and half at the sky in shock.

"Sorry," Setsuna mumbles, snapping her back to attention. "I'm… getting you… all bloody…"

Although Setsuna had taken most of the impact, their roll had landed her on top of Konoka, supporting herself with one arm. Their foreheads are touching and Konoka can feel the blood – Setsuna's, Shiro's, she doesn't know – dripping down onto her own face. She wants to answer: 'it's okay,' or maybe_ '_don't apologize, you saved my life' – _anything_, really, but the words are all jammed up.

"Konoka… I think I… have to pass out," Setsuna's voice registers in her head. "But… are you… okay?"

"Am I okay…?" Konoka repeats, not knowing how to answer. _Am I okay? She's about to pass out, but am _I_ okay?_

Maybe it's that. Maybe it's the complete lack of regard for her own well-being – they say that recklessness is charming, right? The whole bad boy thing works pretty well right now: the ripped button-up and the dirty jeans, the blood, the whole murdering for her thing… Or maybe it was what she'd said earlier – _I can't die… I won't get to be close to you anymore_ – or, maybe it's her own adrenaline, and the hormones, and the situation – really, it could be any number of things.

All she knows is that Setsuna had come and whisked her to safety in the fantasy-like manner she'd laughed at herself for earlier. Prince Charming is a ridiculous term, that's true, and putting someone on a pedestal like that is just _asking_ for it, that's true too, but damn if Setsuna isn't about as close as Konoka has ever seen right now. She'd run in wearing those clothes (_I have better taste than I thought_), looking as handsome or beautiful or _whatever_ as anyone she'd ever seen, saved Konoka's life, gotten the shit kicked out of her in the process, and now she's asking if _Konoka is okay_.

Who _wouldn't_ feel this way?

"Are you?" Setsuna asks again, and out of the corner of her eyes Konoka can see the arm supporting her start to shake.

"Yeah," she whispers. "I'm… great."

"Good… stay that way…"

Her arm finally gives out, and the last thing Setsuna sees is Konoka's worried face.

* * *

**XXX**

**A/N: **I never thought I would voluntarily write so many fight scenes in my life. I hope this one was fairly easy to follow; I'm not used to them, so if it's a bit off, I apologize.

Anyway!

Hurray! Finally the beginnings of something romantic! Haha. It took a while to get to this point, I know, but this is officially the beginnings of all the KonoSetsu goodness. There's still going to be a lot of build up, but feelings have been established at least.

Also, I really dislike using OCs most of the time, but with the severe lack of developed villains in Negima, I'm finding it difficult to avoid them. From here on out all villains should be at least _based_ on real characters. I've tweaked some of them to have, you know, _personalities_ and such, but they should be recognizable me thinks.

Buuuut, hopefully you guys enjoyed the chapter regardless, and thanks once again to all my reviewers. Every single one has me grinning like an idiot, no kidding. I'd write a more extensive thank you, but I'm crammed with homework and work issues. I hardly had time to even edit this chapter; apologies if it's not up to par!

Please leave a review on your way out! (My birthday was on Saturday, and I'd happily except reviews as presents winkwink nudgenudge!) :)


	8. I Am NOT a Lesbian!

**A/N: **First, I want to warn you that the** RATING HAS CHANGED! **And in this case, M is for masturbation.

(If you can't already tell, this chapter takes a break from the otherworldly plot line and is in general very silly.)

Anyway, I thank you all for the birthday wishes, for the great reviews, for taking the time to leave comments, for pointing out my mistakes, for skipping out on sex to read this story, for -

Alright, you guys get the point. I love you all.

Also, just so you guys know, I'm going to try and keep my updates regular, but we're almost at the point where I don't have anything pre-written anymore, so new chapters might not be up as often. Now, off to read with you!

**Edit**: Fixed a few grammar issues. Also changed story rating back to "T"; I realized since I hadn't given anyone a warning, people might not think to change the search filters to see the update :) So, this _chapter_ is rated M.

* * *

**I am NOT a Lesbian!**

**XXX**

There are hands.

Lots of hands on her body, and maybe arms attached to those hands, and maybe people attached to those. She's not sure; it's only a vague sense of touch, of being prodded and poked, but she's certain that there are hands.

It's dark too, but maybe her eyes are closed? Setsuna can't tell, but it seems like it, because it's dark but she _knows_ there's light, like when you squeeze your eyes shut and look up to the sun and you can see orange. Except the shine here is white and hot behind her eyelids, and no matter what she does, she can't seem to move. But she can still _feel_.

Someone says something, and someone else says something back, but she can't make out what. There's the clink of metal on metal, some movement that she can sense, and then –

And then what?

_I've been here before. Or is it that I'm here now?_

The question echoes like she'd spoken out loud in some cavernous place, but no one answers, so she figures it must've been in her head.

There's a noise that she hadn't heard at first: _beep… beep… beep…_

Setsuna can feel the rubber glove-covered hand and something cold and sharp and metal, and she knows where she is now and the panic sets in, consuming and terrifying.

_Not again not again not again please not again –_

She tries to make noise, to say _anything_ to keep this from happening, but nothing comes out. Setsuna can feel her fingers twitch and she hopes beyond hope that's enough of a sign for someone, _anyone_ to notice that she's not asleep, that she can still feel, that _I'll give anything just please don't let them do this to me again –_

The noise gets faster now: _beepbeepbeepbeepbeep_ –

There are more gloved hands and more sharp instruments and Setsuna braces herself because she's been here before, and if she'd had more control of her body she thinks she might be crying by now because this is going to be one of the worst things that's ever happened to her – she knows because she's been through it already –

But then there's a hand on her hand, entwined with her twitching fingers. It's not gloved, and it's warm, and she clings to that sensation like a life line.

The other people disappear miraculously, and the cold metal tools go with them. There's only that hand and that warm feeling – no pain, and Setsuna wants to say so many thank-yous, if only she could speak. She settles for remembering to do it later, for squeezing the hand back and hoping whoever's it is knows that they just saved her soul, that if she'd had to go through that again there's no way she would've allowed herself to live another day.

But there is the hand. And so she does.

**XXX**

Setsuna opens her eyes slowly and shuts them again immediately. There's an obnoxious, buzzing, fluorescent light above her head that makes her already bad headache even worse. Turning her head to the side takes a great deal of effort, but she does it anyway, and this time when she opens her eyes she sees her own arm. Her gaze travels down to her hand, then to the hand in her hand, than up the arm to Konoka's worried expression.

"You're awake," Konoka breathes a sigh of relief. She makes a move to go get a nurse, but Setsuna's grip tightens, so she sits back down again.

Setsuna wants to speak, but there's something covering her face. She lifts her left hand to take it off only to knock herself in the head with the purple cast covering her wrist and half her palm. She stares at it a moment, then manages to get her fingers under the oxygen mask, lifting it off her face.

"Where am I?" She wheezes out, and Konoka nods her head to a glass of water and Setsuna finally lets her go to grab it.

"You're at Saiwai Hospital," Konoka replies, watching her friend gulp down the drink. "You've been asleep for two days."

"You brought me to a hospital."

It's a statement, not a question, and even though it hadn't come out with any amount of annoyance attached to it, Konoka remembers Setsuna once told her she hates hospitals.

"I had to," she says gently, hoping Setsuna won't be angry with her. "You were in pretty bad shape."

'Pretty bad shape' is a pretty big understatement considering the condition Setsuna had been left in after the altercation with Shiro. Konoka had been fairly out of it by the point they'd arrived, but she can still remember them rattling off the list of injuries: dislocated shoulder, shattered wrist, two broken fingers, bruised collarbone, muscle damage to the hamstring from a deep laceration, various puncture wounds from debris…

And Konoka? Not a scratch. She wishes there were a stronger word for 'guilty.' That may have sufficed at first, but after the doctors had just barely caught the internal bleeding in time – damage from a high fall, they'd said – and Setsuna had almost died, that word doesn't quite cut it anymore.

"I see," Setsuna nods, setting the glass of water back down and glancing out the door of her hospital room. She sees a few people walking by in scrubs and white coats, most in an obvious rush, others calmly, some carrying trays of food and still more pushing wheeled stretchers down the hallway. Behind the various nurses and doctors she can see a few policemen standing idly in the hallway, talking quietly amongst themselves. Konoka follows her gaze to the uniformed officers.

"Yeah," she sighs, "I already told them what happened, but after I contacted my dad –"

"What did you tell him?"

Konoka hesitates, surprised at the urgency in her friend's voice. "I… told him what happened. That I got kidnapped and you came in and saved my life. Believe me," she laughs, "The officer's had a hard time believing you and Shiro caused half a house to collapse. It's pretty unbelievable, thinking about it."

"Yeah…" Setsuna trails off, thinking. She doesn't know much of anything about Shiro, but she's seen strength like that pretty frequently in other demons. Her own ability to rip that door off the cell and punch someone bigger than her through a wall, though, is the unbelievable part. _That happened with the lock at the museum, too…_

"Well, anyway," Konoka continues, a little awkward from Setsuna's strange responses, "My dad insisted on flying all the way over here, even though I told him we're fine now. He'll probably want to talk to you, but don't worry about it. His opinion of you seems to have changed after what happened."

_I wonder about that_, Setsuna thinks, but doesn't give voice to her worry. Instead she sits up slowly and flexes her muscles one by one, starting from her toes upward. When she gets to her shoulders the pain makes her wince, and Konoka stands up worriedly.

"They said they can't put a cast on a shoulder injury, but that you shouldn't move it too much or it could get worse."

"It's not so bad." She starts to take a deep breath but stops halfway, painful pressure in her chest preventing her from finishing the action. _Okay, that's pretty bad._

A knock on the doorframe stops her experimenting early, and they both look up to see Eishun standing just outside the room.

"She's awake," Konoka says with a smile, and he returns it tiredly and steps inside.

"That's good news. How are you feeling, Setsuna?"

"Okay," she shrugs, but stops halfway because of her injured shoulder. Konoka winces in sympathy and leans over worriedly, anxious about not being able to do anything to help.

"Should I get a nurse?" She asks, shifting from foot to foot.

Eishun looks back and forth between the two. "Why don't you go tell them she's awake? I'd like to speak to Setsuna anyway, if you don't mind."

Konoka glances at Setsuna, then at her father, but agrees. When she's at the door she gives him a look and pokes him in the chest authoritatively. "Don't be mean," she warns, and he manages to keep a serious expression on his face when he nods. As soon as she's out of the room though, he can't help but smile.

"I swear," He laughs lightly, "She should've been a doctor or something. She cares so much for everyone."

"Seems that way," Setsuna agrees, but watches him warily. He notices her hesitation and sighs, scratching the back of his head nervously. After a tense moment he sits down in the chair Konoka had been occupying, and the two stare at each other silently for a minute.

"I guess Konoka told you about our conversation on the phone."

Setsuna nods.

"Right, well…" He trails off, looking around the room awkwardly. "You… she says you saved her life."

"I guess so."

"She told me what happened," He continues uneasily. "About that… that man, and why he kidnapped her. She told me about the two story fall, and the cell door, and punching him through a wall..."

Setsuna stays silent, waiting for him to continue and knowing what's coming next.

"Humans can't do things like that," He finishes quietly.

"No," She agrees, "They can't."

Eishun's grip on the arms of the chair tightens, and when he speaks again his voice is noticeably more terse than before. "What exactly are you saying?"

"I mean what I said, I guess."

His jaw clenches and unclenches, and his stare is harsh. Despite what Konoka said, it's obvious that he still doesn't trust her, let alone like her. After a minute of strained silence he relaxes a little, but Setsuna can still see the accusation in his eyes.

"Are you going to hurt her?" He asks, finally acknowledging the elephant in the room, albeit indirectly.

"I saved her life, didn't I?"

"That wasn't a no."

Setsuna once again finds herself stuck between not wanting to lie and not being able to tell the truth. She settles for silence this time.

"I just…" Eishun sighs again, running a hand through his hair tiredly. "What is it that you want?"

"What?"

"What do you _want_?" He asks again, thinking she hadn't heard.

Setsuna had heard him, though; the question had just caught her off guard. No one had ever asked her that before, and frankly, she doesn't know how to answer.

"You mean if I could have anything?"

"I suppose…" Eishun raises an eyebrow, wondering if she's leading him into a bribe.

Setsuna doesn't want money, though; she doesn't know what she'd do with it. She doesn't particularly want power, either, although it would be nice if people would stop trying to maim her all the time… Yes, that sounds pretty close to something she'd want, but where would that leave her? If she wasn't getting beaten, she'd likely be ignored completely. Neither option sounds particularly pleasant.

_What do I want…?_

"I guess, if I could have _anything_, I'd want to be happy." Not that she really knows what that means, exactly, but she's heard it enough from other people, and it seems as close as she's going to get to an answer.

Eishun opens his mouth to respond but stops himself, obviously surprised. He leans back in his chair, staring at her quizzically. That is hardly the answer he'd been expecting, and certainly not among the top five he'd received from other demons he'd asked.

His stare makes Setsuna think that maybe her answer hadn't been good enough, so she continues slowly, trying to find the right words.

"And, I guess – if I could have anything," she clarifies again, making it obvious that these wishes are made with the notion that they're impossible, "I'd want Konoka to be happy, too."

"Is that really all you want?" Eishun asks skeptically, finding that rather hard to believe.

Setsuna takes another moment to think about it. She's never wanted anything before, really, except maybe to stop being in pain. Other than that she'd mostly just done things that _other _people wanted, and that suited her just fine. But now that she'd said it out loud, the idea seems real to her.

"Yeah," She says, more sure now, "That's really what I want."

They continue to look at each other, and Eishun leans forward in his chair, searching her face for something. Whatever he was looking for, however, he doesn't find in her guileless expression.

_She's being serious,_ he thinks with no small amount of awe, leaning back in his chair and relaxing his gaze. He doesn't trust her, but at the same time, why would she have saved Konoka's life if she was here to cause harm? It doesn't exactly fit in with his picture of otherworldly creatures, and he knows there's something he's missing. Still, with the situation being what it is, and with Setsuna nearly dying to save his daughter's life…

_I suppose it could've been orchestrated, _he thinks, tapping his fingers on the chair. Shiro was undoubtedly a demon as well, and it seems more likely that the whole thing was a set-up to earn his trust. But Setsuna had _actually_ been seriously injured; Konoka had told him her heart had stopped for a full thirty seconds. If it were a ploy, Shiro had taken it awfully far, and he himself had been killed. Moreover, Eishun can't think of a reason why they'd need his trust. If they were after Konoka, that would've been the perfect time to take her life, and if they were after Eishun, then it would've made more sense to see Shiro's plan through.

None of it adds up to Setsuna being evil.

"I'm glad to hear that," Eishun says finally, then goes to stand. "In that case, I'll probably head back to the US in a day or so. As far as the police go, I've dealt with the legal issues, but you'll still have to give a statement."

"What happened to Shiro?"

"You killed him."

"Ah. I see."

Eishun, who is at the door by now, turns to look at Setsuna one last time. He struggles with his words for a moment, then finally he smiles at her. "Thank you," He says genuinely, "For saving my daughter's life. If what you said is true, I trust you'll look after her. And if not," He pauses, a clear warning in his tone, "I'll know."

Setsuna nods in understanding and he leaves the room, stopping to talk with the police in the hallway.

Her line of sight is broken by Konoka stepping in to let her know they can leave whenever she feels up to it. Before they go, Setsuna gives her statement to the police, but they don't seem too interested in the details; Eishun hadn't been kidding when he said he'd taken care of it.

The receptionist gives Setsuna an odd look when they go to leave. By all means, she should hardly be up for moving, but at her insistence, the woman checks them out anyway and tells Setsuna her limitations – no exercise or strenuous activity, don't get the cast wet, etcetera – and the first thing they do is stop and get sushi on the way home.

"The doctors said rest and relax," Konoka explains. "And that's exactly what you're going to do."

She means it, too. The next few days Setsuna does nothing but sit in bed and eat delicious food, sleep, and play video games. Konoka doesn't even let her get up to turn the TV on; she insists on doing it herself, even going so far as to feed the other girl when both her hands are occupied with the PS3 controller.

Not that Konoka minds, of course. Setsuna risked her life to save her and got hurt in the process; in Konoka's opinion, this is the least she can do to thank her for it.

Besides, she's always had a strong nurturing side; it makes her happy to take care of her friend. And if that means sleeping in the same bed and cuddling all night, well, that's all part of her penance and her duty as a friend, right? It's not like she particularly _enjoys_ it – not more than anyone cuddling anyone else would, of course, and that's not to say that she doesn't _not_ like it or anything… _I'm thinking too hard about this_, Konoka laughs off her strange thoughts, but while it's pretty easy to chalk up her actions to feeling guilty, the feelings are harder to excuse. But she still tries.

Like, for example, when they're sitting in bed together and she's watching Setsuna play through Bayonetta, and her friend mentions she's hungry, just because Konoka wants nothing more in life than to get up and cook something doesn't necessarily _mean_ anything. Just because she feels like, at that moment, she'd do battle with a giant spider or something equally as terrifying to ease her friend's discomfort, definitely doesn't mean that she's – _that I – that I'm –_

_It doesn't mean anything_.

No, certainly not. And those feelings she'd had when Setsuna had caught her from a two story fall? Perfectly reasonable. Who _wouldn't_ get butterflies for someone who'd just saved their life? And if she'd been focusing on how attractive Setsuna was in that moment, or how if she'd been a man – _if_ she'd been a man, which she isn't – it would've been the perfect romantic moment for a movie-like kiss, Konoka can chalk all that up to her endocrine system playing tricks on her.

No matter if the thoughts hadn't completely gone away – probably a side effect or something. If she still notices how attractive Setsuna is and watches her out of the corner of her eye, or if they're lying in bed together and she sometimes has the urge to just lean over and –

_Nope. I'm thinking too hard again_.

Really, it's silly to think that she might be having any kind of legitimate romantic feelings towards Setsuna – an insult, almost, because they only exist because Setsuna had saved her life. They're not _real_ feelings, they just stem from her gratefulness and her guilt. So as they sit together now, playing video games, Konoka resolves to not let her strange thoughts get the better of her.

"Are you alright?" Setsuna asks, noticing Konoka's pensive look.

"Yeah, I'm fine. Just restless I think. How are you feeling?"

Setsuna shifts a little in the bed before answering, testing her strength. "My back's kind of sore, but other than that I'm okay."

Konoka pauses a moment, weighing her resolution against her desire to help Setsuna. _People do this for each other all the time_, she reminds herself.

"Let me massage it for you. It might help."

Setsuna smiles gratefully, and Konoka's stomach definitely doesn't flip in response. That would just be weird.

Setsuna pauses her game and moves onto her stomach, grateful for Konoka's offer. _I've been lying down too much_, she thinks, flexing the muscles in her back and feeling the knots all along her spine. Konoka sits on Setsuna's butt and starts at her lower back before moving upward, careful to avoid the other girl's injured shoulder.

_See? _Konoka rolls her eyes at her previous thoughts. _It's fine_.

She works out some of the knots and moves higher, putting pressure in circular motions at the base of Setsuna's neck. _It's totally fine_, she thinks again, but her fingers press against a particularly sore muscle and Setsuna lets out a little noise of pleasure, unaware of its effects on Konoka, who gulps down her sudden nervousness.

She presses again and Setsuna sighs with pleasure, mumbling a "that feels amazing."

"Th- that's good," Konoka replies, trying to sound less anxious than she actually is. _I need a cold shower_, she thinks, feeling her temperature rise a little with each of Setsuna's noises. _Or maybe a bath. I haven't taken one of those in a long time… I can get some nice soap and take a hot bubble bath, and maybe have some music and just calm down for a little while. _

Her mind immediately flashes to the enticing idea of her sitting in a big hot tub with nice smelling lavender scented soap, and some relaxing music playing in the background. She imagines her own muscles unknotting in the hot water, and she'd just lean her head against the edge of the tub and this coiling knot in her stomach would definitely go away, and Setsuna would just slide her hand right up her thigh to help ease the tension –

"Are you getting tired?" Setsuna turns her head to face Konoka. "You slowed down a lot. You can stop if you want."

"Yeah, uh, my hands are cramping. Maybe we should get you a professional massage or something," Konoka laughs uneasily, trying to shove the images of a wet, naked Setsuna out of her mind. It doesn't help that the girl flips over underneath her and sits up so they can be face to face, putting Konoka in a rather provocative position straddling Setsuna's waist.

"That's okay, I actually feel a lot better now."

"Oh, that's… that's good."

Setsuna leans forward a bit, peering at Konoka's face. The proximity has the brunette freezing up, and she can feel her heart rate go climbing.

"What are you thinking about?" Setsuna asks innocently, curious about Konoka's strange expression.

"Um, n- nothing really, just that I'd les- _like_ to, uh, take a, um, a bath."

"A bath?"

"Yeah!" Konoka says a little too loudly, glad for the opportunity to turn the conversation. "Maybe we should go to a hot spring or something, since we're in Japan and all. I hear hot water can really help relax your muscles."

Setsuna doesn't respond at first, still trying to figure out the look on Konoka's face. _She looks… nervous. _Not being able to come up with a reason why that might be, Setsuna decides to let it go for now.

"I didn't know that," she says finally, giving up on her inspection. "Maybe we should try it."

"I completely agree."

Konoka takes that opportunity to remove herself from her unsettlingly comfortable position straddling Setsuna's pelvis. Her phone is sitting on the TV stand, and she can't help but notice when she reaches out to take it her hands are shaking just a little bit. Dutifully ignoring that, she rings Ayaka without letting herself think about it.

"Hello?" Ayaka's voice answers almost immediately, although she sounds a bit frayed, which is unusual for someone who's normally so composed.

"Hey! Are you busy?"

"No – or, well, not really." There's a sigh and the noise of some papers shuffling. "A couple of our finance guys messed up the accounts receivable; it turns out we didn't make nearly as much this quarter as we thought."

Konoka winces in sympathy. Accounting errors are always a pain in the ass. And a crap ton of paperwork and apologies to your stockholders. "I'm sorry to hear that."

"It's alright, really. It's not like we took a loss or anything, but my CFO is having a heart attack about it and refuses to let me rest until it's fixed. He's so persistent I swear I'm hearing my ringtone even when my phone is off."

"Huh, well, actually, Setsuna and I were thinking about taking a day to go to a hot spring –"

"Yes, _please_." Ayaka's response is quick and uncharacteristically informal. "How does this afternoon sound? I know a great place, and I'll bring Asuna and we can have a girl's day. Even _she's_ being bugged about this nonsense, and she can't even count past one hundred."

There is a very angry, very audible "_HEY!" _in the background, and Konoka can't help but giggle at that.

"That sounds awesome. See you guys around two?"

There are some squabbling noises, and Konoka holds the phone away from her to save her hearing. After a few seconds Asuna's voice comes through the receiver –

"I am _totally_ capable of counting past one hundred –"

Then Ayaka, much more composed and obviously amused, "See you then!"

The little beep lets Konoka know the call was ended, and she shakes her head at her friends' shenanigans.

"They're coming around two," Konoka turns to Setsuna, feeling much more relaxed now, but she remembers the wrist cast and frowns. "Do you think it'll be okay to get your cast wet for just one day?"

"I think so."

Setsuna doesn't mention that her wrist has healed by now anyway.

**XXX**

Ayaka and Asuna had shown up at two-thirty with a newspaper in hand and more expressions of disbelief than Konoka knew existed.

"What the _hell!_" Was the first of many, as Asuna had ripped the paper open to the middle section and pointed violently at a headline that neither Konoka or Setsuna could read.

"What?" They'd asked simultaneously, and Ayaka had burst in at that point sounding equally as outraged.

"Attempted Murder of Visiting CEO: One Dead, One Hospitalized,'" She reads out loud, then glances away from the newspaper to give the two girls a look. It seems like she's about to say something, but Asuna beats her to the punch.

"You know, I totally get not wanting to tell your friends every detail about your lives – bad dates, sure, whatever. Embarrassing stories? Yeah, okay, I get it. _Attempted murder?_ That's something you tell people about!" Asuna's volume increases with each sentence until she's shouting, and if the limo driver wasn't so well paid, he'd probably look far more pissed off at the noise.

Setsuna picks up the paper and stares at the unfamiliar lettering. Giving up, she puts it down and shrugs. "It wasn't that big of a deal."

"_Wasn't that big of a_ –"

"How can you possibly say that some lunatic trying to –"

At Setsuna's vacant expression both women stop and turn to Konoka who, of the two, obviously has a way firmer grip on the relative importance of life events. The brunette holds up her hands in surrender at the two unforgiving stares.

"I'm sorry guys, but I had a lot to think about. It only happened less than a week ago, and Setsuna and I were pretty busy dealing with the aftermath. She was unconscious for two days, and the guy ended up dying, so –"

"Woah woah woah, start from the beginning," Asuna interrupts her. Konoka spends the car ride going over every second in excruciating detail, with Setsuna filling in some of the gaps (in highly understated detail) since Konoka hadn't actually witnessed everything.

The limo pulls up to the hot spring, which is actually more like a spa, but as Konoka finishes the story the two listeners sit stunned in the car for another minute.

"Holy shit," Asuna mumbles, then finishes with a grin, "Setsuna, you kicked the shit out of that guy!"

"_Asuna_!" Ayaka reprimands, "He's _dead_. It's probably hard enough to deal with something like that without you rubbing it in."

Of course, any moral strings attached to Shiro's death hadn't even occurred to Setsuna, so she wisely chooses to stay quiet about it.

"Bastard had it coming!" Asuna exclaims. "Did you _hear_ what he was going to do to Konoka? A freakin' _hacksaw_?"

Understandably, Konoka shudders a bit at the thought, and Ayaka smiles reassuringly at her. "Well, I'm glad everyone's alright for the most part." She finally opens the door and the others follows suit. "I think you're going to need to go over those details with me one more time, Konoka; it really is unbelievable."

"Yeah, actually, there's something I wanted to ask you anyway," Konoka replies, her voice turning into a mumble. Ayaka raises an eyebrow at her, but wisely chooses to wait until they're alone to ask.

Asuna glances back and forth between the two then crosses her arms and huffs. "I see _we_ aren't invited to this party," she says, mostly just to bother Ayaka. "Setsuna and I will go do our own thing then."

Ayaka rolls her eyes, not falling for the bait this time. "Meet in the main spring in an hour?"

"Fine."

Asuna drags Setsuna off in another direction as soon as they're inside the building – a large, well-lit place with fruit-filled water coolers by the reception desk and bamboo furniture.

Setsuna takes one look around then turns to Asuna hopelessly. "What is it we're supposed to be doing?"

"When I come here with Ayaka she usually does the whole mud bath and facial thing, but it's pretty nasty if you ask me. How about we go chill out in the locker room instead?"

Setsuna shrugs and follows her to a plush "locker room," which is really more like a lounge, complete with fluffy couches, free hot tea, and a sauna. They plop down in two arm chairs and Asuna kicks her feet up, giving Setsuna a long stare before speaking.

"That was quite an adventure you had," Asuna starts. Setsuna look around pointedly, and the redhead waves off her concern. "We can talk here, the worst that happens is people think we're crazy."

Setsuna nods and waits for Asuna to continue.

"So what happened?" The redhead asks after an extended silence.

Setsuna shrugs. "I told you all of it in the car."

Asuna gives her a look, and Setsuna isn't used to seeing such a serious expression on her friend's face. The tone of this conversation isn't like any they'd had before; they'd always spoken as friends, or rivals at worst, but this almost feels like a debriefing.

Or an accusation. Setsuna tries not to show her nervousness.

"You ripped a metal door apart."

"Yes…"

"You punched some guy through a wall."

"Right…"

Asuna raises an eyebrow. "You wanna tell me how?"

Even if she wanted to, Setsuna wouldn't be able since _she_ doesn't even know how she did it.

Asuna sighs. "I haven't seen any angels capable of doing something like that on Earth since… well, me."

More silence. Setsuna shifts awkwardly in her seat.

"…_So_," Asuna continues, obviously perturbed, "Is that some kind of Shinmeryuu thing?"

Seeing an out, Setsuna bolts for it. "It – was chi. Like magic, but easier to harness on Earth."

A moment of silence, and then, "Oh, right, I forgot about that." Asuna grins in embarrassment, and Setsuna silently thanks the forces of the universe. "Can all you Shinmeryuu people do stuff like _that_ though?"

"No. I mean…" Setsuna takes a deep breath and holds it for a second. She's tired of lying, and also not very good at it. "To be honest," she lets the air out of her lungs in one rush, "I didn't know I could do it either. I just kind of panicked."

Asuna smiles and leans forward, slapping Setsuna on the shoulder, "Hey, don't worry about it. I didn't mean to grill you like that," she laughs. "I was just surprised is all."

"That's alright." Setsuna smiles back, and the moment having passed, Asuna quickly launches into the _real_ interesting questions.

"So, now that Konoka and Ayaka aren't here, tell me what _really_ happened."

**XXX**

In another part of the spa, the two aforementioned humans sit side-by-side. Two Japanese women are sitting in chairs by their feet performing what Ayaka had called a "much needed pedicure," despite the fact that every inch of her was pretty much immaculate to begin with.

Ayaka had similarly been curious about the details of Konoka's story, although in a much less business-like way, and so Konoka goes through her second retelling of the events. When she's finished, the blonde shakes her head in disbelief, staring at her companion incredulously.

"It's hard to believe all that really happened."

"Tell me about it," Konoka agrees, thinking back on what has undoubtedly become her craziest life story to date. "I mean, the things I saw were completely out of this world."

"I don't think there's a better way to describe someone being punched through a house," Ayaka mumbles, still not sure if she can believe that detail. I mean, at least the door can be explained by some rusty parts – _maybe _– but the amount of force it would take to hit someone _that_ hard?

She shakes her head again, trying to imagine it. "Setsuna must have been in one hell of an adrenaline rush."

"Yeah…" Konoka trails off, memories of her friend catching her from the two story fall echoing in her head. She can remember the wall caving in, and then there was a brief second or two of free-falling, and then…

She's glad for the face mask they're wearing because she can't avoid the blush as the images flash through her mind: Setsuna's proclamation before the fight, her torn up, blood-stained clothes when she'd caught her, the sheer exhaustion in her eyes, their foreheads pressed together, and her voice – '_Good… stay that way…' _

"So what was it you wanted to talk to me about?"

Konoka jumps, startled out of her reverie by Ayaka's voice. The woman at her feet glances up briefly before going back to her work.

"Well, actually, I… don't know…"

Ayaka, who had been lying with her head back and her eyes closed, turns to look at Konoka. "You don't know what you want to talk about?"

"I mean – I don't know how to start," the brunette corrects herself. "It's kind of a weird topic."

The blonde rolls her eyes in good-humor at that. "Believe me, you can talk to me about anything. I once had a serious argument with Asuna over which one of us would make a better wizard."

"Why does that not surprise me," Konoka giggles at the strangely appropriate imagery. Feeling a little more relaxed, she continues, albeit still hesitantly. "I guess I'll just, um, be blunt then. Have you ever…" Konoka swallows nervously, glancing at the two women giving them their pedicure. _I'm pretty sure they don't speak English…_ "Have you ever had thoughts about another woman?" She finishes abruptly, the sentence coming out so fast it takes a moment to register with Ayaka.

When it does though, the line of thought is obvious. "Is this about Setsuna?"

"K- kind of, I mean, well, yeah." Konoka averts her gaze, too embarrassed to look Ayaka in the face.

Ayaka takes a moment to process that. "I've thought about it briefly," she finally says, and Konoka works up the courage to make eye-contact. "But, to be blunt, I find the male anatomy far more interesting. What exactly brings this up, by the way? I mean, I figured it was Setsuna you were thinking about, but –"

"It was –" Konoka interrupts, but then pauses, trying to put her words together. "After she rescued me – well, no, I guess it kind of started in the middle of it… but when she caught me from the roof, it was like – I don't know," she sighs again, then changes her strategy. "Do you ever think about what the perfect boyfriend would be like?"

"Sure," Ayaka says easily, "All the time."

"I think most people probably do," Konoka continues slowly, "But I never have, really. I just know the people I've been with weren't it; and when Setsuna and I were lying there in the grass – I don't know," she says again, frustration evident in her tone. "There was this moment where I just thought _that's it_."

"What's it?"

"Setsuna."

Ayaka thinks on that a moment then leans her head back again. "Well," she says after the pause, "Maybe she is."

"But – but wouldn't that be – I mean, I'm not a…" The last word can't seem to make it out of her mouth and Konoka leaves it at that.

"Asuna's simplistic mind may have rubbed off on me too much, but maybe you're thinking too hard about it."

"You think so?"

"Maybe," Ayaka says again, lifting her shoulders in a dainty shrug. "If Setsuna seems right to you, then would her sex really matter? Unless, of course, you're not physically attracted to her."

"I – wouldn't say that," Konoka half-mumbles, not quite ready to reveal her rather explicit fantasy from earlier in the day.

"So what's the problem?"

Konoka considers that._ I guess there isn't one, except that maybe she wouldn't be interested. I mean, _I _don't even know if _I'm_ interested. I'm probably getting ahead of myself… but if that were the only problem – oh._

She cringes at the thought of one more, one very important problem.

Ayaka glances sideways at Konoka and notices her extremely alarmed expression. "Are you alright?"

"I think my dad would murder me," Konoka admits, biting her lip nervously.

"Religious?"

"No," the brunette shakes her head, "But he doesn't really… he's not too fond of Setsuna. And he's also pretty hell-bent on marrying me off and continuing the family tree."

"It's not like that would be impossible."

"Yeah…"

Ayaka smiles at her companion, and despite the green guck spread on her face, it's still surprisingly effective. "You don't have to worry about that yet anyway, and the thoughts might just go away on their own. In my opinion, you should just wait and see how everything goes. And," she adds, maybe a bit grudgingly, "You could always talk to Asuna about it as well. She gives inexplicably good advice sometimes."

Konoka laughs good-naturedly at her tone. "Thanks," she says, "I'll do that."

**XXX**

Despite her desire to talk to Asuna, the idea of getting her alone seems pretty unlikely at the moment. After their facials, the two women head to the locker room connecting to the main spring. Ayaka promptly begins undressing, and Konoka pointedly looks away, weighing her discomfort against normal customs here.

"Do I have to be naked?" She finally asks after Ayaka has wrapped herself in a towel.

"You don't _have_ to be, if you happened to bring a swimsuit or something, but despite how the outside might look, this isn't really a touristy place," she gestures around at the other, mostly Japanese women in the locker room. "It's the norm here, so no one will take a second glance at you. Besides, you could always keep the towel on."

"You're right," Konoka tries to laugh off her uneasiness. She relents and strips down, wrapping a towel around herself before following Ayaka to the spring.

"Oh wow," she mumbles, looking around once they're outside.

The spring is a _massive_ open air bath. The steam hides a lot of the details, but she can feel the tiles underneath her feet, and through the fog she can tell there (thankfully) aren't that many people here.

"Showers are over here. We should rinse off before getting in," Ayaka says, heading off to the far side of the baths with Konoka in tow.

They get under the rather chilly stream of water and Konoka glances next to her. Sure enough, the few people that are here are all nude, but nobody seems to care. _Japan is an interesting place_, she thinks, more used to the American thought process of "nudity is bad."

Turning to the spring, she tries to spot Asuna and Setsuna. She and Ayaka had been late getting there, their pampering haven taken a bit longer than expected, but she doesn't spot them. After another minute, when she's thoroughly cold, they both head over to the springs and slide into the hot water.

Konoka takes a deep breath and lets herself relax, keeping her towel wrapped snugly around herself. She clenches her toes and stretches her legs in the water, letting the heat soothe her muscles. Another minute goes by and she sighs with pleasure, resting her head back against the lip of the pool.

"Feels amazing, doesn't it?" Ayaka asks from beside her.

"S'incredible…" Konoka mumbles in reply. Remembering their absent friends, she lifts her head up and opens her eyes to look around again. "Where do you think the others are?"

"Right here, duh!"

Konoka nearly jumps out of the water at the sound of Asuna's voice from directly behind her. After the initial surprise she does a one-eighty and smiles at the sight of her towel-clad friend.

"What took you guys?"

Asuna shrugs. "We were just talking. Setsuna had to use the bathroom; she should be out in a second." The redhead is already wet from the showers, and she dips her feet into the spring before sliding in, repeating Konoka's sigh of pleasure at the feel of the water. The three of them sit side-by-side in the small inlet they'd claimed for themselves.

Konoka, however, is suddenly finding it harder to relax. She readjusts her towel several times and crosses her legs, then uncrosses them, then crosses them again. She also can't seem to close her eyes anymore, and periodically glances behind her every minute or so.

"You alright?" Asuna asks, cracking an eye open at having felt all the fidgeting next to her.

"Yeah, I'm fine," she reassures, but the nervous behavior doesn't stop.

Konoka wills herself to calm down. _It's totally fine_. She takes a deep breath. _You're sitting next to two naked women in towels right this second and nothing is weird; just because Setsuna will be here in a minute doesn't mean that this has to be awkward –_

"Hey."

All three women turn around, and then promptly turn away. Asuna, the least affected by the sight behind them, turns around again and gives Setsuna a "what the fuck are you doing" look.

The facial expression not having much of an effect, she goes for the verbal approach.

"What the fuck."

"What?" Setsuna asks, looking at the three of them then down at herself. "Did I do something wrong?"

"You're buck-ass naked, for one thing," Asuna needlessly points out, jabbing a finger into Setsuna's bare calf in accusation. "Didn't you bring a towel?"

"Isn't this a bath? I thought people were naked for baths," Setsuna replies, then seeing the towels around her friends, continues in a worried tone, "Am I bothering you guys?"

Asuna looks away from her nude friend to raise an eyebrow at the other two women. Ayaka shrugs, turning to face Setsuna. Her eyes stay carefully trained on the girl's face.

"Not at all; I'm glad to see you're really getting into the culture!" The blonde reassures politely. "And it's not like any of us haven't seen a naked woman before." At that she gently elbows the furiously blushing Konoka in the ribs.

"R- right, it's, uh, fine," Konoka responds in kind, but still can't work up the courage to turn around.

She soon realizes she doesn't have to anyway. After a moment of pause and a mumbled, "If you guys are sure," from Setsuna, she feels the water next to her rising as her naked friend slides into the pool beside her.

Konoka barely manages to withhold a squeak of surprise. She looks pointedly at the water, at a random point in space, then finally at Ayaka to her left. _What am I supposed to do?!_ She mentally screams for help at Ayaka, who sees the panic on her friend's face and gives a subtle shrug, being unable to do much else.

Setsuna leans backs and crosses her ankles, getting comfortable in the water. She reaches back to massage her sore shoulder, and Konoka hears the little splashes of water but can't bring herself to look. After a few minutes Setsuna turns to her, and Konoka is finally forced to make eye contact with the girl. She hopes the steam is thick enough to hide the redness of her face.

"You were right," Setsuna's tone relays her pleasure, which does nothing to reduce Konoka's discomfort. "This is really helping my muscles."

For the sake of consistency Setsuna keeps her cast-covered left wrist out of the water, and it hangs off the ledge behind Konoka.

"That's good," the brunette responds, trying to keep her tone even. When Setsuna's fingers brush her shoulder, however, all semblance of cool, calm, and collected quickly disappear. She shoots out of the water and onto her feet, garnering an incredulous look from Asuna.

"What's up?"

"Nothing, nothing," Konoka laughs nervously. _What the hell is wrong with me?! _"I just – wanted to stretch." She goes about pretending to do just that, but predictably, her plan backfires.

"Are your muscles sore too?" Setsuna asks, standing up as well. "Or are you sick? Your face is really red."

Konoka mumbles something quietly and looks to Ayaka for help.

"It's probably from the bath," the blonde interjects, receiving a quiet _thank you_ from Konoka. "Maybe you should go cool off in the shower, Konoka."

Asuna, ever helpful, winks at the uncomfortable brunette. "Or maybe all the naked women are getting to you, huh?" She asks jokingly, snickering loudly and obviously finding herself quite amusing.

There is a brief moment of panic on Konoka's face before she forces herself to laugh too, although it comes out far too loud and far too forced.

"Hah! Yeah, as if. That's – definitely got nothing to do with it." Konoka clears her throat. "I'm going to go shower anyway. The heat and all…" She goes to walk way, having effectively excused herself, but is stopped by Setsuna's voice.

"I'll come with you," Setsuna says, stepping fully out of the water to follow her friend.

"No!"

Setsuna takes a step back at the sudden outburst, and she looks at Konoka, waiting for an explanation. After a few seconds of Konoka stumbling over her words, Setsuna's confused expression begins to fall into hurt, and the brunette cringes at her own tactlessness.

"I just want you to enjoy yourself, that's all," she smiles at Setsuna, who, now reassured, smiles back.

"That's alright. I'll enjoy myself as long as we're spending time together."

Konoka searches Setsuna's expression for any sign of meaning behind those words, but like the first proclamation, her expression is completely devoid of any subtler connotations. _How can anyone be that obliviously charming? Does she even know what she's saying?!_

Setsuna doesn't, of course, and just stands there smiling in complete bewilderment to Konoka's sudden lack of responsiveness.

"Right. Okay then," Konoka finally says, having officially run out of excuses.

Before disappearing into the steam she throws a desperate look over her shoulder at Ayaka, who gives her another apologetic shrug. When they're out of sight, the blonde promptly turns to Asuna and jabs her mercilessly in the ribs.

"Hey! What was that for?" Asuna shouts, rubbing her side indignantly.

"You're such a moron sometimes."

"What did I do?!"

Ignorant to their friend's sudden argument, the two shower-bound women make it to the taps, where Konoka promptly turns the water on and sits herself down on one of the short wooden stools provided.

Sitting under the relatively cold spray and watching the water swirl away down the drain, she can feel her senses coming back to her slowly. _Way to overreact,_ she chides herself. _You're just two friends going to a hot spring in Japan together. Nothing weird._

"Are you sure you're alright?" Setsuna asks again.

"Yeah, I'm fine." Konoka keeps her eyes trained on the tiled wall in front of her. There's a dispenser of hair product sitting on a little indent in the wall, and she busies herself reading the long list of organic ingredients. _If I don't look, I'll be fine,_ she thinks resolutely.

"Are you still sore?"

"Kind of," she responds distractedly, keeping up the ruse.

"Here, let me…"

Before Konoka can ask, the words quickly get garbled into an incoherent mess at the feeling of Setsuna's hands on her wet back. Her fingers knead gently into Konoka's shoulders, copying the movements from the massage she'd gotten earlier.

"Wh- what are you doing?" Konoka manages to ask. She balls her hands into fists around the hem of her towel until her knuckles turn white.

"Returning the favor."

_Right. Of course_.

She tries to bring herself to relax under Setsuna's ministrations – the massage _does_ feel really good, after all, but it's difficult. Konoka takes a deep, steadying breath, and tries to direct her thoughts away from the situation.

_There's nothing weird about this_, she tries to tell herself again. _It's just Setsuna, your _friend_, giving you a massage. Just like you did for her this morning, when you were imaging the two of you making out in a bathtub, and her hand sliding up your leg –_

"Oh, did that hurt?" Setsuna asks, referring to Konoka's sudden squeak.

"No, you're fine."

"Okay…" Setsuna continues the massage, a bit gentler this time, and Konoka takes another breath.

_Okay, so you had a little fantasy this morning. Who doesn't fantasize about their friends sometimes? _She doesn't give herself enough time to answer that question realistically. _Everything's totally fine. Just think non-sexual thoughts. Like – like puppies! Yeah, puppies. And, uh, kittens, and other small, innocent animals. Good, _she thinks, feeling herself relax a little bit. _As long as you don't think about Setsuna everything's going to be fine. Just don't think about her naked body right behind you, or her fingers touching your wet, bare skin, or her offering to wash your nude body with her bare hands –_

"What are you thinking about?"

Konoka nearly jumps out of her skin at the innocent question. "Washing! I mean, nothing. _Nothing_."

"Washing?" Setsuna asks, confused. "Washing what?"

"Absolutely nothing. Nobody's washing _anything_," Konoka says firmly, crossing her arms over her chest.

"Then why'd you say it?"

"Because – because I'm not washing my hair. Currently. But, uh, I probably should."

"Oh," Setsuna nods, accepting the obviously fabricated explanation. "Well, there's soap right there. Let me grab it for you."

She then proceeds to lean over Konoka's back to grab the soap, pressing the front half of her wet, slippery, completely naked body against her friend's back.

Konoka had allowed her towel to slip down for the sake of the massage, but she now regrets that fervently. She can feel every inch of Setsuna against her in excruciating detail, which does nothing but conjure up some very graphic images of the nude body she'd, thus far, been keeping away from her line of sight.

Not being able to do much of anything except sit there in pure, unadulterated agony, she says nothing when Setsuna squirts the soap onto her hand and proceeds to lather Konoka's hair.

The brunette almost cries with relief, however, when Asuna plops down on the stool next to her.

"Hey," she offers, raising an eyebrow at the strange scene. "You guys have been gone for a while. Ayaka and I are getting out. Speaking of which…" Asuna turns to the approaching blonde and grins cheekily. "How come you never do that for me?" She nods her head in the direction of the hair-washing.

"Because in order for me to even have the opportunity, you'd actually have to _bathe_ once in a while," Ayaka retorts, not even humoring the other girl.

"Hey! I'll have you know I'm completely hygienic."

"Except when you're rolling around in that filth-pit you call an apartment, maybe."

"Well _maybe _it'd be cleaner if I wasn't always forced to do your menial labor! Then I'd actually have time to clean it."

Ayaka merely rolls her eyes at that before turning to Konoka. "So, I was thinking," she starts, giving the brunette a pointed look, "That maybe you should check out that new mall in the neighboring ward. I hear it's pretty spectacular, and I was going to send Asuna there anyway to pick up some things for me –"

"See! Always with the labor –"

"What do you think?" Ayaka finishes, ignoring Asuna's outburst.

"I think that sounds great."

"Good." The blonde turns to Setsuna, who has relinquished Konoka's hair so she can wash out the soap. "Setsuna, my driver and I can drop you off at the hotel. I bet you could use some rest anyway, right?"

The swordsman feels perfectly fine, actually, but figures that maybe a normal human with a slew of injuries might need to rest more. _Besides, I should probably call Mana… I forgot to do that after the whole kidnapping incident._

Agreeing to the plan, and with everyone showered and, thankfully for Konoka, fully clothed, the women part ways.

**XXX**

The mall is, as Ayaka had described it, spectacular.

It's a huge two story building with white tiled floors, over one hundred and fifty stores, too much air-conditioning, and massive TV screens hanging from the ceiling, each one flipping through a variety of loud and colorful advertisements. They'd both had to stand wide-eyed in the entrance for a solid minute before walking in, passing dozens of shops selling all kinds of products. About half the names and item descriptions are dually written in English, and they both giggle over some of the poor translations before reaching the food court.

"So," Asuna starts once they're seated, a large plate of yakisoba sitting in front of her, "What are you planning to do about this Setsuna stuff?"

Konoka stirs her coconut bubble tea listlessly. "I guess Ayaka filled you in, huh?"

"More or less," she shrugs, shoving a forkful of noodles in her mouth.

"I'm not really sure what to do about it," Konoka admits with some hesitation. "I don't even know if any feelings I have are real, or if they're just because she saved my life, or _what_."

Asuna tries to say something through her mouthful of food and, realizing she probably sounds like she's not speaking English, swallows the noodles and tries again. "Would they be less real if they _are_ because she saved your life?"

"Well, yeah. Or… they would be, right?"

The redhead shrugs noncommittally. "Maybe you should just wait it out and see."

"That doesn't seem to be doing much. I mean, every time we're close to each other it's like… you know, butterflies and stuff," Konoka finishes lamely, averting her eyes in embarrassment.

Asuna leans forward, examining the other girl and humming in thought. "Are you always this shy?"

Konoka sighs again. "No, not really. I'm just having a hard time with this because, well, we…"

"Because you're both women," Asuna finishes the thought.

"I mean, yeah, I guess."

Something occurs to Asuna, and she squints in concentration, trying to remember all her previous conversations with the swordsman. "Is Setsuna even into women?"

"I have no idea. I was hoping you'd know."

She takes another second to think about that, somehow swallowing half her plate of food in the downtime. "To be honest, that girl doesn't seem to be into much of anything."

"Yeah," Konoka agrees, taking a sip of her drink. "I noticed that."

They sit in thoughtful silence for a moment more. _So much for Setsuna having trouble with Konoka,_ Asuna thinks wryly. It's not like Setsuna is unpleasant or anything, and thinking back on her bold declaration at the hot springs today, she can kind of see how someone might find her charming. _But still, the girl's a walking social nightmare._

Asuna mentally catalogues Setsuna's positive traits: _apparently loyal, for one thing. She's a good fighter, she's honest, although maybe a bit too much… and I guess by most standards she's pretty damn attractive –_

_Wait._

"Hey, Konoka."

The brunette looks up, snapped out of her own thoughts. "Yeah?"

"You think about Setsuna a lot lately, right?"

"Right..."

"About, you know, being with her and stuff, right?"

"Right…" Konoka answers a bit more warily this time.

"Sexually?"

Thoughts of her past fantasies surface quickly, and the brunette stutters over her reply, although the blush is enough of an admission in itself.

Asuna leans forward again, glancing around surreptitiously. "Have you considered the fact that maybe you're just really, really horny?"

"_Asuna_!"

"What!" She holds her hands up defensively.

"You can't be serious."

"But I am! When was the last time you got laid?"

Konoka has to think a little too hard about that. _When was it? College? No, it can't have been that long ago…_

"Uh."

Asuna rolls her eyes at the non-answer. "What about the last time you masturbated?"

"_Are you -?!"_

"Just answer."

Once again, she has to think pretty hard about that too. _It must've been… a year ago?_

"I just – I haven't been in the mood, that's all," Konoka responds, equally as defensive as Asuna had been a moment ago.

"Well, maybe that's why this has all come up."

"Do you really think that could be it?"

"Why not?" Asuna jabs a finger in her direction, "What if you're just _so_ deprived that –"

"Okay, okay, I get it," Konoka cuts her off, glancing around nervously. "So what should I do?"

Answers seem to be coming easier to Asuna than her companion, and the redhead smiles and gets up to throw away her empty Styrofoam plate.

"Come with me," she says, leading Konoka to the nearest mall directory. She stares at it for a minute, running her finger down the list of store names until she spots the one she's looking for. With an "ah hah!" she stalks off towards the escalator.

Konoka follows obediently, although a bit nervous about what her friend has in store for them. She soon finds out she had a reason to be.

They're standing outside what _could_ be an ordinary clothes shop, if one wasn't really paying attention. Upon closer inspection to the mannequins, however, one would realize their outfits took a step past the world of fashion and right into the world of Sasha Grey.

"Are you serious?" Konoka asks, staring at the store's translated, bright purple sign reading _Night Dreams_.

"How many times am I going to have to say yes to that question today? Relax already," Asuna chides, grabbing Konoka by the wrist and leading her into the store. "You said yourself you haven't been in the mood lately, and this is the perfect place to remedy that."

Looking around at the variety of pornographic paraphernalia – penis-shaped cake pans, boxed up sex dolls, and grossly realistic looking dildos – Konoka is understandably disbelieving.

They walk to the counter and she examines the vibrators inside the glass case while Asuna flips through a catalogue. Her eyes catch some of the phrases on the pages – twelve settings! Six speeds! Ultra-power!

_Oh God…_

It's not like she finds anything _wrong_ with the idea, but having grown up rather sheltered, she'd never frequented a place like this before. Sex and the like, in her mind, had always been something for two people to experience together. Her rare forays into the world of self-pleasure had been brief and far-between. And she certainly hadn't entertained the thought of buying herself sex toys before, although Asuna seems pretty hell-bent on the idea at this point.

"I guess you wouldn't know what you like, huh?" Asuna mumbles, making faces at some of the crude descriptions. To be honest, she's never done this either, but she doesn't feel it's necessary to tell Konoka that.

"Nope."

"What about this one?" She points to one in the case, and Konoka cringes.

"I don't know if I want one that… _realistic_ looking." _I don't know if I want one at all, actually_.

"What about that one?"

Konoka peers through the glass, tilting her head at the small, curved object. It's small enough that she could wrap her whole fist around it.

"Isn't that too small?"

"Well you're not really supposed to… uh. It's for external use," Asuna finishes, deciding it's safer to quote the description than go into detail.

One of the salesman approaches them at this point and Konoka points to the one in the case, more eager to get out of the store than to actually buy the damn thing. Knowing she won't get out of it that easily, however, and with the small thought that _maybe Asuna is right_, she slides her credit card anyway.

"See? Problem solved," Asuna declares, grinning as they head out of the store. "Now just find a way to get Setsuna out of the hotel room, and there you go. Then you'll know whether it's real or just… not real," she amends.

"I guess so. And Asuna?"

"Hmm?"

"Thanks," Konoka smiles genuinely at her friend. Even though this idea still seems just a little bogus to her, she's glad to have someone willing to go through all the trouble.

_Now I just have to think of a way to be alone for a little while…_

**XXX**

They'd gone straight back to the hotel after the hot spring, but during the short car ride, Ayaka had asked Setsuna a series of very strange questions. They'd mostly been about Konoka, but not in the usual, friendly, "how are you guys doing" kind of way.

Setsuna hadn't known how to answer most of them, and it didn't help that she also had no idea where they'd stemmed from.

After the twenty minute journey, during which Setsuna had unwittingly deflected all answers regarding her "feelings towards Konoka," whatever that means, she'd been relieved to enter the hotel room alone. Part of her had worried that Ayaka would come in with her if only to continue her little interview, but that thankfully hadn't been the case.

She turns on the air conditioner, still hot from the bath, and flops down on her bed.

_Why was she asking me all those questions?_

It's unusual for anyone to ask Setsuna _anything_ about her feelings (besides Konoka, maybe), and beyond that, the inquiry had extended to things she'd had no basis to answer. She lays there for a long time, contemplating what it means to be "into women," or "romantically interested."

_I know what those things mean in _theory_, but how could I know the answer? And why was she asking?_

With absolutely no experience, things like that are hard to contemplate. _Besides, what does it matter if I find Konoka sexually appealing?_ She doesn't know if she does because she's never thought about it, and she wouldn't know even if she _did_ because she doesn't know what it feels like, and even if _that_ were true she _still_ wouldn't know what to do about it.

Frowning at her lack of answers, she glances at her pactio cards on the bedside table. Sitting up, she turns the one she'd made with Mana over in her hands, thinking now would be a good time to make the "call," since she's alone.

Taking the time to first get up and change into her pajamas, she sits on the edge of the bed and puts the card to her forehead.

_Mana?_

_**I see you're alive. Thanks for letting me know.**_

She's being sarcastic of course, referring to the very long period during which she hadn't heard anything from Setsuna. This all goes completely over the swordsman's head though.

_No problem._

_**So what happened? Is Konoka alive?**_

_Yes, she's alive, but it's a long story._

_**Well you caught me at a good time. Go ahead.**_

Setsuna proceeds to recount the events of her latest adventure, sparing Mana many of the unnecessary details. About five minutes into it, she begins to pace, picking up her clothes off the floor in the process. After another five minutes she's officially finished the story, including a recount of her two day hibernation in the hospital and her little run-in with Eishun. She tries and fails to fold one of her shirts with one hand while waiting for Mana's reply.

_**I guess it's good that Eishun thinks you're on his side**_, she finally says. _**Although you'll very likely be watched from now on.**_

_I expected as much._

Another pause, and then:

_**How are things going with Konoka?**_

_Good, I think_, Setsuna replies hesitantly. It's not like Mana to ask frivolous questions, so she knows the other woman must be getting at something.

_**You almost died saving her life.**_

Setsuna licks her lips nervously.

_Yes._

_**That would have effectively ended any chance we had at taking her soul.**_

_Maybe,_ Setsuna admits.

_**But you did it anyway.**_

_Yes._

_**You do realize your job is to kill her, don't you?**_

_I wasn't ready yet._

Back in the U.S., Mana shakes her head at that reply, having lived long enough to know where this is headed.

_**It's going to be hard, and you'll never be ready.**_

Setsuna tries to decipher the meaning of that and comes up short.

_What do you mean?_

_**Nothing that you would understand yet. **_There's a moment of silence during which Setsuna can only assume Mana is putting her words together. _**Just don't get more involved with this girl than necessary.**_

_Involved like how?_

Mana rubs her temple, warding off the headache spurred by her co-workers utter ignorance.

_**Don't get too **_**close**_** to her, alright? Don't go spilling some version of your life story to her –**_

Setsuna cringes.

_**And don't go snuggling in bed with her like in some kind of poorly disguised lesbian chick flick –**_

Another cringe.

_**And I don't know if this will be an issue with you, but whatever you do, don't let yourself get attracted to her.**_

Setsuna sighs in relief at that one.

_I won't_.

_**Good. Is there anything else I should know about?**_

_Nothing I can –_

"Shit," Setsuna mumbles out loud, hearing the little electronic beep signaling someone entering the room. She'd already been putting her poorly folded clothes into the closet, and in her panic at being potentially discovered, she stumbles into it and closes the door behind her just as Konoka walks into the room.

_**Setsuna?**_

She nearly jumps in surprise, but realizes quickly that she still has the card pressed to her forehead.

_Sorry, Konoka came back so I jumped into the closet._

…_**Why?**_

_So she wouldn't know I was talking to you._

_**And how the hell would she have known that? All she would've seen is you standing there with a weird self-photograph pressed to your forehead.**_

Thinking about it, Setsuna realizes Mana is probably right.

_Should I get out of the closet?_

_**And tell her what? That you were playing hide and seek with yourself?**_

_Do you think she'd believe that?_

Mana clenches her fists in frustration, wondering for the nth time how this girl hasn't died yet.

_**Just stay in the closet until she leaves again, you idiot. Let me know if anything important happens.**_

With that, communication is effectively cut off. Setsuna tucks the card into the pocket of a pair of her cargo shorts lying in the closet, making sure to button it closed. With nothing to do but wait, she stares into the room from between the slats of the closet door.

Konoka is currently standing in front of the mirror, staring quietly at herself. After a minute or so she blushes quite profusely and mutters something to herself. Going for her phone, she dials a number on it, and Setsuna watches her own phone buzz on top of her bed.

"She left her phone here?" Konoka muses out loud. After a moment of pondering she walks to the door and hesitates for a moment, hand lifted and resting on the bolt. "Now's as good a time as ever, I guess…"

She bolts the door closed. _Why would she do that?_ Setsuna wonders from her place in the closet. The vague notion that she probably shouldn't be spying on her friend occurs to her, but she shrugs it off. _It's not like I'm doing it with bad intentions..._

Konoka flops down on her own bed, just as Setsuna had done earlier, but face down. Her arm hangs over the edge and a black bag dangles from her wrist. For a moment she lies still, and Setsuna considers the possibility that her roommate might just fall asleep, in which case she'd have to wait until morning to get out of the closet.

Thankfully Konoka sits up again, rather suddenly too, and stares at the bag. With a look of determination she empties it onto her mattress, opening up the small box inside and pulling out – something.

Setsuna squints from her place in the closet. _What is that?_

Konoka proceeds to put batteries in it, and Setsuna wonders if maybe it's a game.

_Guess not,_ she thinks, watching Konoka lie back down on the bed. She unzips her jeans and yanks them off her ankles, throwing them carelessly to the floor. The pants are shortly followed by her bra, which she pulls out from the sleeve of her shirt.

Now in nothing but her underwear and a t-shirt, she turns the vibrator on, touching it curiously with her other hand.

_I'm alone and not even doing anything yet, and this is _still _super embarrassing,_ Konoka thinks, getting on her feet to first turn the air-conditioner off, then the lights. _There, that should help_.

Setsuna blinks rapidly to adjust her vision to the darkness. She has better than average eyesight by far, so it doesn't take long for things to become clear again. When they do, she peers through the spaces in the door again, now thoroughly curious as to what Konoka is doing.

At the moment she's sitting on the edge of her own mattress, but her eyes are trained on Setsuna's bed. She bites her lip and glances around nervously.

"Maybe it'll help," she says to herself with a sigh. She crosses over to Setsuna's bed and lies down in it, not bothering to get under the covers. Konoka hesitates again, throws another nervous look at the bolted door, then finally pulls off the rest of her clothing.

Setsuna watches her friend strip, and once again that vague feeling of _I probably shouldn't be watching this_ crosses her mind, but curiosity wins out in the end. Still, a strange nervousness coils in her gut, and she has to avert her eyes for a moment to make the feeling go away. Looking back, however, the feeling immediately returns.

_That's weird_, she notes, but thinks nothing of it.

She watches Konoka take a deep breath and close her eyes. Setsuna's current view of the girl is in profile, and her right leg is bent, so she can't see many details of her friend's body. Still, the noise of the vibrator is revived, and Setsuna watches Konoka's left hand hesitantly disappear between her thighs. The brunette jumps at the new sensation, then, forcing herself to relax, leaves the vibrator there. After a minute or two her other hand comes up to her breast, and she squeezes her eyes shut and bites her lip, her body undulating against the hand between her legs.

Setsuna watches in wide-eyed fascination. The images click together in her head, and she remembers a familiar scene from her own brief experience with the dark side of the internet. The image of a woman masturbating on a desk flashes through her mind, along with Mana's reprimand that those kinds of activities are performed in _private_.

_So I really shouldn't be watching this_, Setsuna recognizes, but can't seem to tear her eyes away from the scene in front of her.

The video she'd watched hadn't interested her nearly as much. _Why would I find this physically stimulating?_ She'd thought after retreating to her room that day, watching the video passively. She'd even tried simulating the experience, and while it hadn't been _un_pleasant, it didn't seem worth the time.

Watching Konoka do it, however, is entirely different.

For one thing it's not a video on a screen, for another it's not a random stranger, and lastly, Setsuna has actually had real-life, physical contact with that body. She can vividly recall the awesomeness of cuddling with the other girl, of having that warm, soft, comforting, point-to-point proximity.

_I wonder what it would be like to lie with her while she's doing that_, Setsuna's mind wonders, perhaps a bit traitorously. The butterflies in her stomach intensify at the (remarkably tame) fantasy, and she finds herself having to wipe her sweaty palms on the thighs of her pajama pants.

_Why does she want to do this all of a sudden anyway?_ Setsuna asks herself distractedly, still keeping her eyes trained on the scene in front of her. _And why on my bed?_

Konoka had a very good reason for picking Setsuna's bed, however, although Setsuna had no way of knowing that she was the answer to both those questions.

For her part, Konoka had been hesitant to do something so invasive on her friend's mattress at first, but somehow she couldn't imagine Setsuna caring, and not to mention, she figured it might help get this over with faster.

_Maybe I shouldn't have though_, Konoka thinks. _After all, I'm supposed to be doing this to get _over_ her, so to speak…_

After another moment's consideration, and the acknowledgement that her own bed suddenly seems very far away, she settles for directing her fantasies _away_ from her oblivious roommate.

_Right. Just because I'm on her bed doesn't mean I have to think about her, or how the pillows smell like her, or what it would be like if she were here –_

Konoka bites the side of her tongue to snap herself out of that thought process.

_Bad, bad me. Think about _men_, damnit. Penises. Right._

She actually manages to keep that up for about two minutes, recounting her previous sexual experiences in her head and adding a few made-up details where the reality had been less pleasant.

_See? This is fine_, she tells herself, feeling her breathing pick up. She has no issues with the male anatomy, but as her fantasies spiral around that idea, one unwanted thought sneaks its way through the haze of sexual imagery in her brain.

_What if Setsuna had a_ –

Konoka's whimper, born out of both a surge in arousal and a surge in frustration at her own thoughts, surprises both girls.

From her place in the closet Setsuna feels her heart jump into her throat at the sound, and once again the differences between this experience and the one with her laptop become abundantly clear.

_Okay_, Konoka thinks, and tries to steer her thoughts elsewhere. Still, she feels her own body shudder at the idea of Setsuna leaning over her like when she'd caught her from the roof, except, you know, _naked, and inside me, and with one hand fisted in my hair, and –_

Her quiet moan sounds deafeningly loud to Setsuna, who is finding it increasingly hard to sit still in her pile of clothes.

_Wait, no_, Konoka pulls the vibrator away from her for a second and takes a shaky breath, trying to steady herself. _Setsuna does _not_ have a penis, or else I'm sure someone would have pointed that out today in the hot springs. _A picture of Setsuna naked in the bath, although she hadn't actually seen it clearly, conjures itself in her mind, and despite that she's entirely female, the intense arousal and the pulsing need from between Konoka's legs doesn't disappear.

_God damnit_, Konoka sighs, realizing that Setsuna is going to make an appearance in this event one way or another, with or without her consciously deciding that. _Screw it_, she finally thinks, putting the vibrator back.

It's become increasingly clear in the past five minutes that whether Setsuna's body is hard and chiseled or soft and yielding, or whether she's shorter or taller than Konoka, or that despite what Setsuna has (or doesn't have) below the waistband, _I still want her to be here._

The admission is freeing, and finally giving into the thoughts, the fantasies come rushing: their bodies pressed together, Setsuna kissing her lips, her neck, trailing down her torso and running her tongue over her breasts, her hand _finally_ slipping between her legs, her own body arching to meet Setsuna's fingers –

Setsuna watches Konoka arching her back and lifting her hips, and the swordsman's eyes follow the tongue that darts out to wet her lips, and she hears the increasingly shallow, ragged breathing, and whatever it was that had started off as nervousness quickly morphs into something else entirely. She doesn't know what to do about, or what she wants, and her lack of knowledge about her own needs makes her grind her teeth in frustration.

Weighing her sensibilities against what is quickly becoming an all-consuming need, Setsuna finally lets her hand slip underneath the waistband of her pants. While it hadn't done much for her the first time, now seems like as good a time as any to try again.

She doesn't know what she's looking for, exactly, but somehow it's easier this time with Konoka in front of her. The sensation is entirely different then than her first experience, and her body jerks at the intensity, nearly slamming her head into the door.

While she'd sought relief, the need only grows the more she touches herself, building up further and further past the point where Setsuna had been sure it was impossible to feel any better. There's a moment where the sensations do seem to plateau, and if she'd been alone she probably would've cursed in annoyance.

_I don't get it_, she thinks, clenching her teeth again to keep herself from making any noise. _What's supposed to happen?_

She doesn't know, but she knows that _something's_ supposed to happen, or at least it'd better if she wants to come out of this closet with her sanity intact.

Setsuna blinks to refocus her vision and waits for a sign from Konoka – a trick to it, or a clue, or _anything_. After another minute, when all logical thought is about to disappear and the urge to burst out of the closet and just _ask, damnit_, is becoming overwhelming, she finally gets her sign. Or close enough, anyway.

Konoka appears to stop breathing altogether, and she arches her back and bites her lip to stifle her own moans, and Setsuna watches those lips with new, unexplainable interest, and then Konoka gives up after a second and Setsuna feels her own body responding to the noises, to the image of her friend shuddering and writhing on the bed –

"_Holy –_"

Setsuna now sees why Konoka had to try to keep quiet, and she collapses backwards on the pile of clothes and bites down on the cloth to keep herself from making any more noise than she already had.

She comes for the first time in her life, and intensified by the fact that she'd had absolutely no past sexual pleasures to balance it, the orgasm hits her like a punch in the gut. She curls in on herself and the world fades away as she lies there, unable to do anything but twitch and squeeze her eyes shut, thighs clenched around the hand between them.

When the feeling finally starts to recede, Setsuna has no idea how much time has passed. She tiredly opens her eyes and peers back outside the closet door again. Konoka is still lying there, panting hard but no longer writhing.

Setsuna stares openly, looking at Konoka's sweat-shined skin, the curves of her body, the pieces of hair sticking to her face, and feels like she's seeing her friend for the first time.

The knowledge that she won't ever look at her the same way again strikes her hard, and Setsuna finally matches up the feelings with the words. _This_ is what Ayaka had meant, and this is what Mana had warned her about, and that same warning makes infinitely more sense now, because stripping the world of this girl suddenly seems like one huge mistake

If she'd been a bit more knowledgeable, Setsuna probably would have recognized that the hormones swimming around the room and in her body might have something to do with it. But, without that information, her feelings are untempered by conscious effort and all she can think is:

…_Shit._

Konoka sits up finally, moving to her own bed and replacing her clothes before tucking the vibrator under her mattress. She goes to the mirror and looks at herself, struggling with her own profound conclusions, and then finally smiles at her reflection.

"That answers _that_ question," she giggles, knowing the implications are probably nothing to laugh at, but not finding it in herself to care at the moment. She brushes her hair and goes to turn on the A/C, standing in front of the fan for a moment before grabbing her phone, unbolting the door, and exiting the room.

Setsuna stays in the closet until she's sure Konoka is out of ear-shot, then opens the door and stumbles out, falling onto her bed.

She knows she should be thinking about more important things than how the mattress now smells like Konoka, or how she may never be able to use her legs properly again, but the serious thoughts are so much harder to deal with.

Still, duty-oriented as always, a mental picture of Mana and Evangeline's disapproving looks make her wince.

"It's going to be fine," she reassures herself out loud. "I'm sure it's possible to make yourself un-attracted to someone, right…?"

_I'm going to have to_, she thinks with no small amount of determination, but despite her conviction, the doubt in the back of her brain is undeniable.

* * *

**XXX**

Fun fact: title of this chapter comes from something my current girlfriend snapped at me a few years ago. (HA! I showed you!)

Anyway, please leave a review on your way out! :)

**XXX**


	9. Even the Best Laid Plans

**A/N: **Apologies for the long absence! I offer you this long-ass chapter as a gift.

Firstly, thanks again for all your continued support; without it I would've given up a long time ago haha. I'm also glad you all enjoy Setsuna as the crush-ee and Konoka as the crush-er; I think in this situation it makes more sense.

Second, this chapter is also **rated M**, although _not_ for masturbation this time. Nothing horribly graphic, however.

Lastly, your hint for this chapter is the author's note at the end of chapter 7.

See you at the bottom!

* * *

**XXX**

**Even the Best Laid Plans (Or Plans to Get Laid?)...**

**XXX**

Setsuna isn't sure where to turn for help at this point.

Mana and Evangeline are completely out of the question, and she certainly doesn't know Ayaka well enough to have such a personal conversation. There's Asuna, but she'd rather save that option as a last resort, so she goes first to magazines and articles on the internet and reads through them thoroughly.

Even for Setsuna, it doesn't take long after her third _Cosmo_ issue to realize that there's no real, practical advice for getting yourself to be unattracted to someone (and even if there were, it certainly wouldn't be in _Cosmo_). The internet hadn't been much help either, and more often than not she'd only found sympathetic responses emphasizing the impossibility of the idea.

The only commonality between them all was the idea of creating distance.

_But how? _She wonders one morning, closing _Yahoo! Answers_ on her browser and shutting her laptop. For the past three days she'd been acting like she'd always acted around Konoka – or as close to that as Setsuna could get when being closer than three feet away from the girl makes her slightly nauseous. And who knew there was a good way to be nauseous?

She stares at her closed laptop a moment more before the sound of the key card in the door snaps her head up. Konoka walks in carrying two overstuffed take out bags and plops them on their nest of blankets on the floor before grabbing the remote.

"TV or movie?" She asks, flopping down next to Setsuna.

"I'm kind of tired of reading subtitles."

"Netflix it is," Konoka responds cheerily, grabbing the PS3 controller and changing the input. They discuss potentially interesting options, Setsuna mostly contributing distracted half-answers.

_Why does it matter if I'm attracted to her if we're the same way we were before?_ She wonders, shaking her head with a quick "seen it" at _The Walking Dead_. Just because her feelings have changed doesn't mean their relationship needs to; after all, everything seems normal so far. And sure, there are the weird feelings in her stomach and the nervous sweating, but she can deal with that, right?

Konoka shifts beside her, knocking their knees together accidentally, and Setsuna swallows her queasiness down. _Maybe not_.

"Oh jeez, I forgot about this movie."

Setsuna glances up at the screen. "Is it a horror?"

"Supposedly," Konoka clicks on the icon for the movie summary. "I haven't seen it, but it's got Megan Fox in it."

"Who?"

"The actress in _Transformers_."

"Ohh, right. I liked that movie."

"Should we watch this one then?" Konoka asks, thumb hovering over the accept button. At Setsuna's shrug she presses play, eager to start watching something.

…Well, okay, not _something_. In actuality Konoka has seen this movie before, and while certainly entertaining, she hadn't thought it anything special – except, maybe, for the long, drawn out, lesbian make-out scene about two-thirds of the way through.

Her strategy may be a _bit_ underhanded, that's true, but Konoka's not doing it maliciously. _I just want to see how she'll react_, she reminds herself, patiently waiting for the scene of interest. She wishes she could just ask, but nobody seems to know Setsuna's (apparently mysterious) sexuality. Setsuna herself had even said during their conversation on the plane to Japan that she doesn't even_ look_ at anyone in a sexual context. Not to mention the complicating factor of her virginity.

_Maybe she just said that because she doesn't have any experience. How could she know for sure who she's into if she's never been with anyone? _ Konoka ignores the fact that her argument doesn't make sense when she applies it to herself, who has never been with another girl but is undeniably attracted to one. Instead she stares at the screen, scoots closer to Setsuna, and crosses her fingers hopefully.

_This is it_, Konoka thinks, eyes darting back and forth between the TV and Setsuna, who is innocently eating her Kung Poa Chicken. The two women on the screen lean forward in a tentative kiss, and she watches Setsuna in her peripheral vision. And Setsuna is…

Still eating.

The scene quickly heats up, tongue action included, and then both actresses are on the bed. Setsuna continues to watch passively, seemingly oblivious to both the eroticism and Konoka's palpable anxiety.

There is a confused shout from one of the characters, alarmingly loud after the silence, and just like that the scene is over. With absolutely zero reaction from Setsuna.

_Ugh!_ Konoka visibly slumps down against the pillows, her disappointment obvious enough that Setsuna turns and raises an eyebrow at her.

"You alright?"

"Fine," Konoka grumbles, but obviously isn't as she crosses her arms over her chest.

"Are you bored of the movie?"

The brunette, sensing an opportunity, slowly shifts her gaze to the girl seated beside her.

"No. I mean," she forces a laugh here, "That scene was pretty interesting, don't you think?"

Setsuna pauses and taps her chopsticks against her lips, considering. "Yeah," she says finally, and Konoka's hope skyrockets. "There wasn't any music playing."

Hope? What hope?

"It didn't affect you at all?!"

Setsuna puts her food down, a little startled by the ferocity behind the question.

"What do you mean?"

"Like, you know…" Konoka trails off, staring intently at the blankets and regarding her outburst with unmatched regret. _Too late now_. "It didn't… you didn't _like it_, particularly?"

_Could I be more obvious?_ Konoka refrains from slapping herself, but just barely. Although, to be fair, it _is_ Setsuna. The girl who wouldn't notice if the sky suddenly turned orange, or if cats suddenly started barking, or if Konoka suddenly turned into a lesbian. Apparently, anyway.

And, true to that pattern, Setsuna hardly seems fazed by the odd question.

"It was pretty good cinematography, as for as movie kisses go, if that's what you mean." Konoka's about to throw her hands up and call it quits, but the swordsman continues, "Or… did you mean because they're both women?"

_Bingo! Finally._

"Well, yeah," the brunette says casually, waving it off like she hadn't been waiting the past hour to see that particular scene.

"Do people normally react strangely to that?"

"I guess that depends on what you mean," Konoka shrugs, maintaining her nonchalance. "Most women might be bothered by it, or intrigued or something. And the last time I saw this movie it was on a date, and the guy I was with wouldn't stop raving about it," she rolls her eyes at the memory, which promptly disappears as she realizes she'd just shoved her foot in her mouth.

"I thought you said you hadn't seen this one."

"I – I meant I haven't seen in it _in a while_."

"Oh." Setsuna takes that answer at face value, thankfully, and Konoka pats herself on the back for the quick recovery.

The swordsman covers her Chinese food, pauses the movie, and leans back, folding her arms behind her head and staring at the ceiling. _Bothered or intrigued, huh?_ She doesn't know if she'd felt either. Really, to her, it had seemed like nothing out of the ordinary. She'd certainly witnessed more than her fair share of big-screen romance while on Earth, and although they'd both been women this time, it hadn't made much of a difference to her. Setsuna tries to draw the comparison between herself and Konoka versus the two characters on screen, and in _that_ light, a tingly cold feeling erupts in her chest, a mix of whatever she'd felt in the closet the other day and a hefty dose of nervousness.

But the movie characters by themselves, much like the girl on the desk she'd seen on her laptop, hadn't done much of anything for her, and that _is_ what Konoka had been asking. As far as she knows, anyway.

"I didn't think much of it, to be honest," she says finally, then turns slightly on her side to face the other girl. "Why do you ask, anyway?"

Konoka hesitates, tapping her fingernails against the wooden bed frame beside her and trying to find the right words. "Do you remember what you said on the plane?" She asks finally.

"Which part?"

"About not looking at anybody, you know, _romantically_?"

Setsuna tries to feel out where this conversation is going, but to no avail. "Yes…"

"I was just wondering if you'd come to any conclusions."

"About…?"

"About what kind of people you like."

"Oh." Setsuna hums in thought. _There are the feelings towards Konoka, but I haven't thought about it in a general sense, and I think that's what she's asking me._ "Nope."

"Well _find out already!_" Konoka throws her hands up exasperatedly. Getting real answers out of Setsuna is like pulling teeth. From a shark. On its period.

"Is it important for me to know that?" Setsuna asks, now starting to look worried by her friend's strange behavior and uncharacteristic persistence about the topic.

Konoka takes a deep breath. "Yes," she says, sensing another opportunity.

She's never been very good at dropping hints, but her usual forward approach is out of the question at this point. Although she doubts Setsuna would stop being friends with her, considering the girl is immune to awkwardness and all that, Konoka herself would have a hard time being around her after rejection. _Not worth the risk_, she knows, deciding that subtlety is best here. _Now if only she wasn't quite so…_ Konoka spends a good thirty seconds trying to think of a synonym for "socially inept," but gives up and leaves the sentence hanging.

"Why?" Setsuna asks after the pause.

"Because having romantic relationships is important for your wellbeing." Or that's what every piece of media _ever_ seems to claim, anyway.

"How do I find out what I like then? Should I do that now?"

Konoka tries not to feel guilty about the fact that Setsuna looks legitimately worried about this.

"Yes, yes you should," the brunette nods sagely. "And I was _thinking_ that _maybe_ you should try and find _someone_ to help you _experiment_ so you could find out who you like. _Possibly_."

Setsuna stares at her friend, noting all the exaggerated annunciations and thinking hard about what it could possibly mean.

…_Is she trying to tell me something?_

That process leads absolutely no where for her, unfortunately. _I'm over analyzing things_, she thinks, and decides to take Konoka's words at face value once again.

"So you're saying I should find somebody who I find attractive, and who similarly finds me attractive, and then go on a date with them?"

"_Yes_, that is _exactly_ what I'm saying."

"And you're saying that this is something I should attempt to take care of immediately, for the sake of my personal health?"

"Yes, yes," Konoka nods, getting a bit anxious about this lengthy preamble, "That's what I said."

"And anyone will do?"

Konoka's eyes narrow surreptitiously. _Why do I have a bad feeling about this_? "In _theory_, yes…"

"Well," Setsuna nods, seeming to have come to a conclusion. "Alright then."

Setsuna pulls the blanket off herself and stands. She grabs her wallet and phone and heads for the door.

"Where are you going?" Konoka asks, alarmed by the turn of events.

"I'm taking your advice."

Konoka can't seem to form a reply, and Setsuna smiles obliviously and walks out the door.

**XXX**

She makes it half a mile down the street before pausing to look around.

This certainly hadn't been how Setsuna was expecting to spend her afternoon. Up until the closet incident, she'd had zero interest in pursuing any relationships that weren't required by her mission. _I don't see how this affects my personal health_, Setsuna thinks, trying to find an answer and coming up short. But, well, Konoka had seemed pretty confident about what she'd been saying, and of the two of them, she certainly knows more about human life and emotional health than Setsuna.

She takes a seat at the nearest coffee shop, glad for the shade underneath one of many umbrellas.

_Maybe this is what those people meant when they were talking about distance_. _If I'm dating someone else, then I certainly wouldn't have to worry about my feelings for Konoka as much_, she thinks, opening up a menu someone had left there and reading it over distractedly. _Is that why she suggested I do this all of a sudden, because she picked up on my attraction? It does seem to be widely known that unrequited feelings can ruin friendships._

The idea that Konoka might have done it because of interest in her flashes through Setsuna's mind, and she promptly squashes the ludicrous idea. _She was probably just watching out for me_.

Still, there are a number of issues with this plan. The most obvious one is that Setsuna has absolutely no clue about flirting, or dating at all for that matter. She has no idea where to meet people or how to approach them, and if TV sitcoms have taught her anything, it's that relationships are complex. Certainly enough so to be beyond her scope of understanding.

The other issue is that she really has no interest in finding anyone anyway. She'd just have to lie to them about herself, and besides that, no one on Earth could possibly understand even her fictional life. Everybody on this planet is spoiled in comparison to her, she knows, and even if she manages to overlook it with Konoka most of the time, it still bothers her on occasion. She's not sure she can be around another person with such a carefree existence, and as far as she knows, relationships are supposed to be forged on mutual understanding.

So, basically, this is impossible.

A waiter comes by and she points to the chocolate bubble tea on the menu, and when he leaves to fill the order she sighs to herself. It would've been nice to have all that nervous energy directed at someone other than her current employer. Even if she'd have to put in more time to maintain the extra relationship only to be sent back to Hell and likely never see the person again, if she could sever just enough of her ties with Konoka by forging new ones with someone else, it seems like it'd spare her quite a bit of discomfort.

It would, of course, be just as difficult to betray _anyone _she was romantically involved with, even if it wasn't Konoka. The idea that the romantic feelings cause the pain regardless of who the person is, however, doesn't occur to Setsuna. Similarly, the idea that one can't _make_ oneself become romantically interested in somebody else by sheer willpower also doesn't appear as a confounding factor.

All she knows is that she doesn't want these feelings because they make her mission complicated, and that the only feasible way to get rid of them is to project them on someone else.

_Except that I don't want to, and am incapable of, forging bonds with people I'm not forced to spend time with._ She sighs again at the hopeless thought.

She accepts her bubble tea with a mumbled "arigatou," one of the few words she'd picked up during her stay in Japan, and resists the urge to bang her head against the table.

A moment later she's glad she didn't. The sound of a chair scraping against the ground pulls her attention away from her self-defeating thoughts, and she glances up and wonders how she didn't notice somebody approaching.

A woman, who appears to be in her mid-twenties, looks at her curiously and points to the chair.

"Mind if I sit with you?" She asks, tucking shoulder length, bleached blond hair behind her ear.

"No, go ahead."

"Thank you," she says gratefully, taking a seat and leaning back with an appreciative sigh.

The woman picks up the menu and stares at it, leaving Setsuna to ponder the situation in silence. In her experience, it's odd for someone to be so forward. There are other tables around with plenty of unoccupied seats, and just as many with people, if she'd simply wanted company. There doesn't seem to be a reason to sit down with Setsuna in particular.

"Something wrong?" The girl asks, glancing up from her menu with a smile.

"Ah, no, not really." _Should I ask what she's doing? Is that rude?_

As if hearing her thoughts, the woman puts the menu down and reaches her arms up in a stretch.

"I hope I'm not bothering you," she says. (Even if she were, she hardly looks like she's about to get up and leave.)

"Not at all. I just, ah… Was there something you wanted?" Setsuna tries in a gentle tone, attempting not to sound impolite.

"Actually, yes." The woman looks around briefly and, spying a waiter, flags him over. She points at Setsuna's drink and says something in Japanese. He smiles at her and walks away, presumably to fill her order. "There we go," she says simply.

Setsuna stares at her in confusion until she realizes she's staring and remembers that's rude. She averts her eyes and takes a sip of her chocolately drink. The silence goes on long enough that Setsuna finally looks up, if only to see if her companion is still there.

And she is. And staring right back at Setsuna.

"I'm surprised you haven't asked me my name yet," she says with a teasing smile, but mercifully continues before Setsuna can be embarrassed about it. "I'm Rokuko."

She reaches out a hand and Setsuna shakes it.

"Setsuna," she says simply, and figuring that most people would be expecting some kind of conversation, struggles to find something to say. "So… do you come here often?"

It's an incredibly awkward conversation starter, but if Rokuko notices, she doesn't mention it.

"Yes, actually. I work at the hospital a block away," she says, gesturing at her dark blue scrubs. Setsuna hadn't even noticed them, to be honest, but she doesn't feel the need to point that out now.

She claws through her brain for something to say, but thankfully a waitress comes to deliver Rokuko's drink. She accepts with a nod of her head and has a quick conversation with the woman, the two seemingly familiar with each other.

"You speak Japanese really well," Setsuna notes once the waitress has walked away.

"I grew up here, actually. My parents moved to Japan for work when I was three." Setsuna doesn't respond, and Rokuko giggles at her awkwardness. "What about you? No offense, but you seem like a tourist."

"I'm here on business, actually."

"Oh? And who do you work for?"

"It's a service-based communications company," Setsuna says vaguely, mostly because even _she_ isn't really sure. "I work under the vice president, Konoka Konoe –"

"Konoe?" Rokuko stares at her in surprise for a moment. "That's a multi-billion dollar company. You must really enjoy your work if you're so high up on the corporate ladder."

Setsuna thinks about that for all of half a second. "Not at all; the work is incredibly boring. In fact, to be honest, I'm not even sure what I'm doing here."

Rokuko's giggling escalates to full blown laughter as Setsuna finishes her sentence. When her amusement dies down somewhat she brushes another stray bang behind her ear.

"Well, Setsuna, you're just about the most honest business person _I've_ ever met," she says good-naturedly.

"Oh. Thank you."

Rokuko leans forward to sip her drink and takes a moment to look over Setsuna, smiling slightly. There's clear playfulness sparkling in her eyes, and one eyebrow is quirked in thoughtful consideration as she takes her time examining the other girl's apathetic expression. Just when Setsuna's beginning to grow uncomfortable under the scrutiny, Rokuko speaks.

"Since I come here so often, I've made talking to strangers a bit of a habit," she starts, finally averting her eyes to search for the wallet in her purse. "So I've met a lot of people, and not very many of them interest me anymore. But I like you. I can tell you're different."

Setsuna blushes at the compliment, still unused to praise, and Rokuko's smile grows at that. She reaches into her wallet and lays a business card on the table.

"My number's on the card, and since _you're_ buying my bubble tea," she says teasingly, leaving just a long enough pause for Setsuna to protest. She doesn't, and Rokuko continues, still smiling, "_I'll_ buy you dinner tonight. How's seven o'clock sound?"

"That – sounds great," Setsuna says, obviously surprised by the offer.

"Fantastic! I'll let you pick the place, just text me the address." Rokuko straightens her shirt and walks away, throwing a wink over her shoulder.

When she's out of sight Setsuna stares at the card on the table. _How did that just happen?_ She picks up the piece of paper and pockets it, anxiety welling in her chest. _And was I propositioned for a date? I mean, she _did _wink at me… but it could've been a playful, friendly gesture…_

She sighs. Even if that had been the most convenient timing _ever_, actually getting through the date is a daunting thought.

But despite her sudden nervousness, she foots the bill with a smile on her face.

**XXX**

Konoka had stared at the door, open-mouthed in shock and wondering what the hell had just gone down for a full five minutes after Setsuna left.

Eventually her jaw clicked shut, and she stood up from her spot on the floor to look at herself in the mirror. She pointed a finger at her reflection accusingly.

"_You_, miss, are an idiot."

The outcome of that conversation hadn't been what she'd intended in the _slightest_, but she gave up glaring at herself after a few more seconds, sighing in defeat.

She's not sure _what_ she'd been expecting, exactly, or even what she'd been hoping for. It's not like Konoka would have been ready even _if_ Setsuna had miraculously taken the very obvious hint and jumped into her arms. If anything, she probably would've panicked at that.

Even so, that certainly would've been better than what actually happened. Despite not knowing what she wants, Konoka hadn't intended to just send her object of affection into the arms of someone else. Potentially, at least. Whether Setsuna is capable of talking someone into a date with her is… questionable.

Konoka smiles at the near excruciatingly awkward image of Setsuna trying to flirt. Sure, she got invited to some guy's hotel after that night in the club, but that had been an entirely separate arena. People expect random hook-ups at 12AM on Saturdays, and Konoka really doubts that Setsuna would subject herself to that kind of treatment again anyway.

Still, when Setsuna walks in the door an hour and a half later with a smile on her face, Konoka can't help but be a little worried.

"What are you so happy about?" She grumbles, still a bit grumpy from the way things had turned out.

"It worked."

"What worked?"

"I took your advice, and, well, I don't really _know_ if it's a date, but someone invited me to dinner."

_You have to be kidding me._

Konoka watches as Setsuna flops onto the bed, smile still intact.

_Why is it that it took me three days to get her to smile, and yet some random person did it in an hour?_

She grits her teeth and forces herself to be cheerful despite her thoughts. At some level Konoka knows she brought this on herself, and if Setsuna's happy about it, then _she_ should be happy about it, right?

Except for the blindingly obvious fact that she isn't, of course.

"That's… surprising," she says, trying not to let her voice betray her bitterness. "How did that happen?"

"I'm not really sure myself. I went to get bubble tea and some girl sat down with me –"

"A girl asked you out?" Konoka asks, some small semblance of hope reigniting in her. "And you said yes?"

"I _did_ say yes, but I still don't know if it was a date or a friend thing. How do you tell?"

Ah, the cluelessness again. Count on Setsuna to be consistent at least. _Maybe she'll screw it up with this girl and then –_

Konoka promptly shoves that cruel thought out of her mind.

"By behavior, usually. How did she ask you?"

Setsuna thinks on that, trying to remember Rokuko's exact wording. "She said that I seemed interesting, and that since I was buying her bubble tea, she'd buy me dinner tonight."

"Hmm…"

"And she winked at me."

"Yep," Konoka nods, "That's a date."

"Oh…" Setsuna trails off, her apparent happiness slowly morphing back into the usual expressionlessness.

"Something wrong?" Konoka asks, outwardly worried and inwardly hoping there is.

But _is_ there? Setsuna had initially been happy about the success of her plan. Now, with some luck, she'd have somebody else to direct her attraction towards, which means that Evangeline and Mana won't be pissed, her relationship with Konoka will stay untarnished, and her mission won't be compromised.

And all that seems like awfully frail reasoning in the face of the fact that she'd much rather be going on this date with Konoka.

Which is confusing enough in itself, really, because the kind of attraction that's related to dating someone isn't the same kind of attraction she feels for Konoka, as far as Setsuna can tell. _Dating_ is like when you want to romance someone, and spoil them, and spend time with them so you can assess their suitability as a life partner.

What Setsuna keeps offhandedly fantasizing about in her free time is, then, definitely not dating.

_I really just want to sleep with her_.

So maybe, in that case, this whole dating thing won't even work. You don't get over sexual attraction towards one person by dating another, do you? Although, by her understanding, there's a general order to these things, and dating is usually a prelude to sex…

And nevermind the fact that she doesn't even know how, exactly, to go about _having_ sex.

_Maybe if I get one of those vibrate-y things…_

"Setsuna? You in there?"

"Huh?" Setsuna blinks a few times to clear her vision and snap herself out of her thoughts. "Yeah, I'm…"

She trails off again, obviously lost in thought once more. After a minute of non-responsiveness, Konoka approaches her on the bed and pokes her gently in the shoulder.

"Are you okay?" She asks, genuinely concerned this time.

Setsuna heaves a sigh, but nods anyway. "I'm fine. I'm just worried."

"About?"

"About _everything_," she says, rolling onto her side and glaring at the wall. "I don't understand what's expected of me."

"It's just a first date silly," Konoka soothes. "They're fun at best and awkward at worst. Nothing horrible is going to happen if it doesn't go well; you'll both just be mature adults about it and agree that it didn't work out. Trust me," she mumbles, "I've been on, like, forty."

That seems to strike a chord in Setsuna, who flips back over to face her.

"Will _you_ help me then?"

_Uh oh._

"Help you how?"

"Give me advice, maybe? Or you could come with me." Although even _Setsuna _is aware that you don't bring a third person on a date, she can hope, right?

"As much as I'd like to, I don't think she would appreciate that," Konoka laughs, shaking her head at the prospect. "What time is your date, anyway?"

"I think she said seven."

"And I guess you totally forgot we were supposed to have dinner with Ayaka and Asuna tonight, right? They're coming to pick us up at five."

Setsuna stares at her blankly for a second. "You guessed correctly. I'm sorry," she adds after a pause. Konoka had situated herself on the bed by this point, and Setsuna throws an arm over her waist as an extension of her apology.

"It's okay. I was the one that told you to go out and do this in the first place." _Unfortunately_. "We'll just have to do it again; I think you would've liked the restaurant."

Setsuna perks her head up. "What restaurant?"

"It's a fusion place close to Ayaka's apartment complex, so it's probably super fancy, but they're pretty famous for their desserts."

She had originally suggested the idea because of Setsuna's fondness for sweets, and judging by the curiosity on her face, Konoka figures she'd picked well.

"What kind of desserts?"

"Apparently they serve Taiwanese shaved ice there, and you can cover it in condensed milk, and lychees, and that star-shaped mango jelly you really like –" Konoka pauses, noting the simultaneously hopeful and disappointed look on Setsuna's face. It's one part sad and nine parts adorable, and Konoka can hardly help but continue, lest the expression disappear. "They also serve dessert sushi. They use sticky rice, and then they cut strawberries and mangos and stuff to look like the fish."

Setsuna's staring up at her with wide, bright eyes, and Konoka's having a hard time not smiling at this point. "Then there's the bubble tea bar, where you can pick a flavor of tea or juice, and then get as many different jellies and bubbles as you like. And thenthere's _also_ the fried banana split with the option of twenty-four different house-made ice-cream flavors."

The expression shifts to five parts sad and four thousand parts adorable. Konoka has to avert her eyes elsewhere in order to keep torturing the girl now. "Oh, and I heard that they'll actually make you a whole, _custom_ ice-cream cake with whatever flavors you want, and then they wrap the _entire _thing in dough so it's like one giant ice-cream mochi – are you crying?" Konoka asks in alarm after working up the courage to face the ridiculous cuteness again, only to find Setsuna looking genuinely devastated.

She pulls her head down under the comforter. "No, I just forgot to blink. That's all."

_I can't believe she didn't even flinch when somebody was running at her with a machete, and I made her tear up by talking about ice-cream._ Konoka's not sure whether to laugh or feel bad, but pulling the covers off Setsuna's face and eyeing the kicked-puppy expression once again, she opts for the latter.

"I have an idea," she says gently, "Why don't you bring her to the restaurant with you?"

"I couldn't do that," Setsuna frowns. "She said she was going to pay, and it'd be rude to bring her somewhere so fancy under those terms, right?"

"Just tell her you have a running tab at the place, and I'll add your dinners to my bill instead."

"You would do that for me? Are you sure?"

They're both valid questions. Konoka _is_ about to buy dinner for the stranger going on a date with the girl she likes. But, bitter and jealous though she may be, selfish she certainly isn't. And besides, when it comes down to it, she just wants Setsuna to be happy, even if it means footing the bill for...

"What's this girl's name, anyway? You didn't tell me anything about her," Konoka quickly changes the subject so she doesn't have time to think twice about her offer.

"Her name's Rokuko, and she works at the hospital."

"And…?"

Setsuna stares blankly at her, not sure what to say.

"What does she look like?" Konoka clarifies.

"Oh. She's… uh… she's white, and has blond hair that comes down to here," Setsuna gestures at her shoulders, "And blue eyes."

_Great. She's dating a Barbie doll._

"Sounds like she's very pretty, then?"

Setsuna shrugs. "Yeah, I think most people would say so."

"Do _you_ say so?"

"Sure, I guess."

"So you find her attractive?"

"As far as I can tell."

"Can you answer a yes or no question with a yes or no?"

"I think so."

"Will you do it?"

"Possibly in the future."

Konoka narrows her eyes. "Are you being serious right now?"

"That depends. Do you think I am?"

"Yes." A pause. "_Are_ you?"

"Maybe."

They stare at each other. The silence builds until Konoka finally gives in, her serious expression dissolving into a fit of giggles. Setsuna watches, her smile growing as Konoka's laughing fit continues, and before she knows what's happening her own shoulders start to shake with laughter. She promptly clamps a hand over her mouth in surprise, and Konoka finally calms down and stares at her still snickering friend. She's going to ask what's wrong, but the realization hits her too.

"I think that's the first time I've ever heard you laugh."

Setsuna doesn't say that may have actually _been_ the first time she's ever really laughed. Although it might be wrong to use the past tense there, considering she's still having trouble maintaining her composure.

"In fact," Konoka continues, "I think that's the first time I've ever heard you make a joke."

"And the first time I've made _you_ laugh, I think." After a moment of consideration, Setsuna adds, "On purpose, anyway."

For a moment Konoka says nothing, thinking about that statement, but then finds herself nearly choking on a sudden surge of laughter.

"Oh God," she manages to say through the outburst. "That reminds me. You should've heard what people at that conference were saying after you walked out of there naked."

Ah, the supposed air-conditioner debacle. Setsuna had almost forgotten about that, but the memory suddenly seems far more absurd than the actual event had at the time.

"I actually did that, didn't I?" She wonders, remembering her half-naked walk down the street.

"Oh yeah you did," Konoka agrees before giving into her giggling fit again, Setsuna following shortly after.

The memory is pretty hilarious now, but Setsuna's not sure it warrants the uncontrollable laughter she's experiencing. She can't remember the last time she'd been genuinely amused by something in a non-cynical way. Even the hours upon hours of sit-coms hadn't done much for her funny bone, but lying in this bed with Konoka, the two of them laughing so hard it's becoming difficult to breathe, her whole experience on Earth suddenly seems hilarious.

"I don't – I don't know why – this is so funny," Konoka stutters, trying and failing to regain control of her diaphragm.

For some reason that just makes Setsuna laugh _harder_, and she rolls over without thinking and finds herself on the floor, hitting the carpet with a loud _thunk._ Konoka peaks over the edge of the bed in concern.

"Are you alright?" She asks, worried but unable to wipe the smile off her face.

"I think – I think I'm going to throw up."

"_Pfft_ –" Konoka tries to stifle her amusement at that and fails miserably, and the two lie there helplessly laughing until a knock at the door forces Konoka to regain some composure. She gets up from the bed, wiping tears from her eye, and lets Asuna and Ayaka in.

"Are you alright?" Is the first thing out of Ayaka's mouth, having noticed Konoka's watery eyes.

"Yeah, I'm fine. We were just laughing at something."

Asuna raises an eyebrow at that. "We?" She asks, and stops short in the bedroom, spying the still snickering Setsuna on the floor.

It takes a second for the redhead to comprehend the image. "Holy shit," she mutters. "You actually got her to laugh?"

"I actually can't get her to _stop _laughing."

Asuna stares worriedly at Setsuna. In all her time with the girl, she'd managed to provoke a smile a few times at the most.

"Is she sick or something?"

"No, I'm fine," Setsuna takes a deep breath to help herself calm down. "I don't know what happened."

"What were you guys talking about?" Ayaka asks, not finding the sight quite as astounding, but surprised nonetheless.

Konoka reclaims her seat on the mattress, gesturing to the other bed for her guests to sit on. She offers a hand to Setsuna, who shakes her head no, seemingly content on the floor. Or unable to move.

"I don't really remember. I think the conversation started with – oh." Konoka had almost forgotten about Setsuna's date in the midst of their laughing fest. "Setsuna has dinner with someone tonight."

"A friend?" Ayaka asks carefully.

Setsuna finally sits up, having reclaimed control of her muscles, and hauls herself back onto the bed. "Nope. I have a date."

There's a somewhat tense silence, and Ayaka and Asuna share a worried glance.

"It's kind of a long story," Konoka says, quick to dismiss the tension. "She met this girl –" another glance, less worried and more intrigued, " – And they're going to have dinner at the same restaurant we're going to."

Asuna skeptically raises an eyebrow at that. "Whose idea was that?"

She hadn't figured Konoka for the type to want to spy on somebody's date, but she'd been friends with Ayaka long enough to know that even the most composed, professional people have their weaknesses.

Konoka, having sensed the slight accusation in the question, averts her eyes. "Both of ours."

When she lifts her gaze again she makes eye contact with the redhead, who gives her a knowing smile.

"Well that's exciting," Ayaka cuts in, diplomatic as always. "What are you planning on wearing?"

Setsuna sits up a little straighter, nervousness returning. "I don't know. Should I wear something special?"

"Of course!" The blonde scoffs, offended by the very notion that she wouldn't. "It's a first date! You want to impress her, right?"

"I guess…"

The next hour-and-a-half is spent giving Setsuna a crash course in date etiquette, mostly delivered by Ayaka and Konoka. By the end of it Setsuna is grudgingly dressed in some of Konoka's most formal clothing, has had make-up applied and removed at least four separate times before the idea was finally given up on, and is now under the notion that if she'd thought dating was complicated before, she may as well be attempting to uncover the mystery behind Mona Lisa's smile.

With a few more reassurances and words of encouragement, Ayaka and Asuna get into the blonde's personal limo, having decided that it'd be better for Setsuna to show up separately.

"You're going to be fine," Konoka lags behind the other two, placing a hand on Setsuna's shoulder and smoothing her shirt.

"I don't know," Setsuna frowns, muttering that statement for the millionth time that day. "What if she doesn't like me?"

Konoka stares at her, taking in the girl's distressed and worried expression. After a moment's hesitation she reaches up, brushing Setsuna's cheek with her hand and tucking a side-bang behind her ear. The gesture feels intimate, but if Setsuna notices, she doesn't comment.

"She's going to love you," Konoka says finally, voice just above a whisper. She turns to get into the car, but Setsuna grabs her wrist.

The brunette turns around, a question in her eyes, and Setsuna falters for a second. "Konoka?"

"Hmm?"

"Thank you," she says finally, "I feel better having you there."

Konoka smiles at her and turns away quickly, shutting the limo door behind her. The car moves forward and she stares at out the window, frowning in thought and listening to Ayaka and Asuna bickering next to her.

"_I feel better having you there."_

She sighs quietly.

_Then I should be there with _you_._

**XXX**

Konoka wouldn't consider herself a jealous person by any means.

That mostly has to do with the fact that she doesn't want much. Sure, she'd grown up in wealth, but material things never really interested her. She'd just as well do without the first-class tickets and the fancy dresses if her father wasn't so insistent about spoiling her. Until Setsuna had shown up, she'd wanted friends, but she'd never looked around and been jealous of other people's relationships. Longing maybe, but envy? Not so much. The feeling had always been a mystery to her.

Now, however, watching Setsuna and Rokuko dining at a candlelit table together on the other side of the room, she understands.

"If you stare any harder you'll set her on fire," Ayaka laughs, forcing Konoka's gaze back to her current company.

_Why does that sound so appealing?_ She pokes her appetizer with her fork listlessly.

"Sorry guys. I'm just…"

Asuna grins. "Jealous?"

"You don't have to look so happy about it," Konkoa mumbles, deciding to have mercy and stop stabbing her tempura. "And to my defense, Rokuko _does_ look like a super model."

Ayaka rolls her eyes at the two of them. "I think that's Asuna's way of telling you she finds it cute."

"That makes it sound so lame," the redhead protests, poking Ayaka in the ribs. Asuna cuts her off before she can retaliate. "So I'm guessing our little experiment didn't ease your girl crush, huh?"

"If anything it just made it worse." Konoka blushes at the memory of her vivid fantasies. "I guess I really do just like her. And not just for _that_ reason," she adds hastily.

Asuna hums in thought. "Can I ask you something?"

"Go ahead."

"_Why_? I mean, no offense, but she's…"

All three glance over at the girl in question, who apparently ordered nothing but desserts, judging by the ice-cream and sweets laden table. They watch as Setsuna makes a tower of mochi and fried banana in an attempt to take a bite of everything at once, only to knock the whole thing over and onto the napkin in her lap.

Thankfully for her, Rokuko seems highly amused by this, but Asuna's point is more than made.

"Well, she is… like that," Konoka admits, trying to ignore the reflex to cringe in second-hand embarrassment. "But she's also sweet –"

"Pun intended?" Asuna snickers at her own joke, which the other two women dutifully ignore.

" – And considerate, and honest, and she's done so much for me over the past two weeks. She fought off a guy with a machete and punched him through a _wall_ for me, for God's sake."

"All very good points," Ayaka concedes. "But you don't think that's why you like her? Because she saved your life?"

Konoka shakes her head. "I mean, that was the catalyst, but there's so many other reasons…" she sighs and leans back in her chair, now completely given up on her meal. "I just don't know what to do about it. I haven't _actually_ been romantically interested in someone since, like, seventh grade."

"And how did that turn out?"

"Considering I was home schooled and he lived pretty far away, we actually did really well. Until my dad found out and chased him with a sword, anyway."

Ayaka and Asuna share an uneasy glance.

"It's not as bad as it sounds," Konoka reassures, "It's not like my dad actually _caught_ him."

That doesn't seem to ease their discomfort, however, and Ayaka clears her throat to break the silence.

"If you're sure you legitimately like her, why not be straightforward about it? I don't know Setsuna very well, but she doesn't seem like the type to end the friendship if she doesn't reciprocate, and honesty _is_ usually the quickest way to deal with these things."

"Says the girl who once stalked a guy for three weeks – _mmf_ –" Asuna suddenly finds herself with a mouthful of chicken, courtesy of Ayaka. The blonde puts her fork down, satisfied with her companion's silence.

Konoka has more or less gotten used to such displays by now and ignores it entirely. "I know you're right, but it still doesn't seem worth the risk. And besides," she gestures at the table of interest across the room, "I _do _want her to be happy, and they seem like they like each other. What if I accidentally ruin their relationship before it even starts?"

"_Or,_ what if she winds up being a complete bitch and you end up saving Setsuna the heartbreak?" Asuna cuts in, having finally swallowed the massive bite of food.

Konoka returns to staring at Setsuna and her dinner companion and sighs. "She seems nice enough to me…"

Or certainly forgiving, at least, and with quite a sense of humor. Sometime during their conversation Setsuna had managed to set her napkin on fire, and while that would've embarrassed the vast majority of diners, Rokuko nearly tipped her chair over laughing.

"You alright there?" Rokuko asks, wiping a tear from her eye after the other girl managed to douse the flame.

"Sorry," Setsuna bows her head slightly, knowing enough to be embarrassed. "I don't know how that happened."

Rokuko waves off her apology. "Don't worry about it; things like that don't bother me."

"You really don't mind?"

"Not at all. Like I was telling you earlier, there are only two things I can't stand in a date: people who are boring, and people who are fake. And you're quite the opposite of both those things."

Setsuna smiles at her. "So you're having a good time then?"

"Definitely." Despite the enthusiasm of her answer, she quickly shifts gears. "But there _is_ something bothering me."

"What's wrong?"

Her gaze shifts to the side, and Setsuna follows her line of sight to Konoka, who quickly averts her eyes.

"Is there a reason that woman's been glaring at me all night?"

_Glaring? _Setsuna considers that, but comes up short of an answer. "If there is, I don't know what it could be."

"So you two don't know each other?"

"I – wouldn't say that." Rokuko doesn't reply, and Setsuna realizes her dinner partner is probably waiting for an explanation. "That's my boss, Konoka. I was supposed to come here with her and some friends tonight, but I forgot and accepted your offer instead."

Rokuko glances back and forth between the two. "So she's mad at you for ditching?"

"I don't know why she would be. It wasn't an important dinner or anything, and we only decided to go out yesterday."

"Hmm." Rokuko puts her fork down and leans back in her chair with a mischievous smile, one hand on her chin in an exaggerated expression of thought. "_I_ think she's jealous."

Setsuna looks down at the table as if expecting to find something worth coveting. There is, of course, nothing but the food Konoka herself is paying for. "Jealous of what?" She finally asks.

"Of _me_. Or, well, _us_." Setsuna stares at her blankly. "I think your boss likes you," Rokuko clarifies.

"Well, we _are_ friends."

"Not like _that_," Rokuko giggles at the naivety. "As in, she _likes_ you. Romantically."

"Oh. _Ohhh_," Setsuna's eyes widen as she considers that, but she quickly finds herself shrugging it off. "I doubt it. She has no reason to like me that way."

"Now I don't know about that." Their chairs aren't directly across the table, and Rokuko leans closer, her smile changing from platonic to sly in an instant. "You're very… charming. In an accidental sort of way."

Setsuna immediately feels uneasy, being unsure about what to expect from their new proximity. "Thank you," she offers in return, and Rokuko leans a little closer at that.

"I know how we can tell for sure. If your boss likes you, I mean."

"How- how do we, uh, do that?" They're suddenly _very _close, and Setsuna resists the urge to back away. It's not that Rokuko isn't pretty – she's beautiful, in fact, by any standards. From this distance it's hard not to notice how blue her eyes are, or the shine of her lips, or the subtle dimples on her cheeks –

"Just go with it," she murmurs, and even if Setsuna had wanted to protest, she doesn't have the time.

And she suddenly finds that the idea of distracting herself from Konoka with Rokuko isn't _so_ ridiculous, because even if her feelings aren't as evolved as they are for the brunette, the kiss is still soft and slow and tastes like fruity lip gloss –

Distantly Setsuna feels like there's something she's supposed to remember, like maybe the fact that her friends, Konoka included, are sitting a few yards away, but it's momentarily difficult to keep her head straight. As Rokuko's tongue slides along her bottom lip, Setsuna feels like maybe she should check to see if her body had spontaneously combusted into a miniature sun, because that's what it _feels_ like –

A crash from across the room startles her out of her dazed state, and she looks over to see what the ruckus is. She just barely manages to catch sight of Konoka disappearing around the corner, and her gaze flicks back to the broken glass on the floor and Asuna slapping a hand to her forehead.

She moves to get up, worried for her friend, but Rokuko's hand on her arm stops her.

"Don't worry; I'll take care of it."

Rokuko gets up to follow Konoka into the bathroom, snagging her glass of wine to take with her. At Setsuna's curious looks, Rokuko shrugs.

"Have you been in the bathrooms here? They have their own living rooms."

With that she walks off, and Setsuna is left sitting at the table, flustered and confused (not that those emotions are particularly out of the ordinary for her nowadays).

When Rokuko is out of sight, she turns back to her friends' table and gives a helpless shrug, to which Asuna rolls her eyes. Ayaka is busy apologizing to the wait staff, although they hardly care considering who they're serving, and the redhead takes the opportunity to switch tables.

She plops down in Rokuko's chair with a _whumph_ and represses the desire to throw her hands up in frustration. "What are you _doing_?"

"I have no idea."

Asuna actually _does_ throw her arms up this time. "Of course you don't! Maybe you should –" she hesitates, not wanting to spill the beans without Konoka's permission. "Maybe you should… not do that," she finishes lamely, and with much lower volume than when she'd started.

Setsuna is, predictably, still confused. "Do what?"

"Make-out in the middle of the restaurant."

"I hadn't exactly planned on it. It just happened. And what's wrong with Konoka?"

Even Asuna can't help but be astounded by her friend's utter inability to put cause and effect together.

"Listen," she starts, somehow feeling like she's about to give the "birds and bees" talk to a child, "Friendships are fragile things, and they can be upset by actions that you might not think twice about. Konoka saw what happened, and for one reason or another, it upset her. So, uh, maybe you should not do that. For her sake. And for, you know," she adds, glancing skyward.

Setsuna frowns at the non-explanation. "I know it sounds silly," she says after some consideration, "But Rokuko thinks it's because Konoka may have developed feelings towards me. Do you think that's possible?"

Asuna pauses, trying to stifle her panicked expression, and then laughs a little too loudly. "No way! That couldn't possibly be the reason."

"Oh," Setsuna's frown deepens, and Asuna tries to gauge the meaning behind that. "Should I go after her then?"

"Now _that_ I'm not sure about."

While they discuss the logistics behind the two approaches to dealing with upset women (the "give her time" hypothesis, or the "she secretly wants you to follow her" theory), Konoka is busy with her own thoughts. She's leaning against the countertop of the make-up room, both palms pressed against the surface, and tries not to be distracted by the fact that the sinks are constructed like two tier waterfalls.

She narrows her eyes at herself, and for the second time today, criticizes her reflection. "What the hell was that?" She mumbles, glaring accusatorily at her image. Her reflection glares back, of course, which only pisses her off more.

"Way to be dramatic," she says to her mirror-self. "Setsuna is on a _date_. It's not that out of the ordinary for two people to kiss on a date."

_Unless the last one happened to be in college. Four years ago. If you don't count the ones set up by your dad, anyway…_

"That – is besides the point," Konoka tells herself. "Just because I have issues being intimate with near-strangers doesn't mean everyone else has to."

_But it's not everyone else. It's Setsuna._

"Would you shut up already?"

"Woah, I haven't even said anything yet."

Konoka turns sharply at the sound of another person's voice and curses herself for not realizing somebody else had come in. Although, to be fair, the make-up room is situated a ways from the door, falling between the _actual_ bathroom and the fully-furnished lounge.

"Was I interrupting something?" Rokuko asks, glancing meaningfully at the mirror.

"No, I was just, uh…" Konoka has to wonder if there's any graceful way to get out of this situation.

(The answer is no.)

"Don't worry about it," Rokuko laughs it off. "Who isn't guilty of talking to themselves sometimes?"

"Yeah…" Konoka trails off. It's hard to dislike this girl when she's so damn nice. "So why are you here?"

"That's an interesting question to ask someone in the bathroom," the girl grins at Konoka's clear embarrassment. "But in this case, I guess it's warranted. I saw you run off and came to talk to you."

The question of "why" hangs in the air.

"You were glaring at me all night," Rokuko explains, which sends Konoka further into her spiral of self-loathing. "I asked Setsuna about it. She told me you're her friend, and I made the obvious deduction."

"Which would be…?"

"You want her."

While true, that is _not_ how Konoka would have put it, and the courier in her brain runs with the word "want" straight into the mental brick wall labeled "sex."

Considering her Ivy league education and that her work demands formal speech, Konoka comes up with the most mature response possible. "Do _not_!"

"Do _to_," Rokuko replies easily. "And that's totally fine. I understand."

"I –" Konoka promptly switches gears when the other girl's words reach her ears a second later. "You do?"

"Well, yeah. You guys are close friends, right? And Setsuna's one-of-a-kind. She's straight-forward, she's beautiful, she's considerate and painfully, adorably awkward. Like a prince-charming type," Rokuko narrows her eyes and bites her lip thoughtfully. "That was raised by wolves."

"Huh. That is scarily precise."

The two women make eye-contact, and mutual understanding passes between them. Rokuko takes a sip of wine and places the glass on the counter.

"Look," the blonde smiles sympathetically, "I get it. It's hard to watch someone you like be with somebody else, and I understand that it's impossible for me to _not_ be the bad guy in this situation. Even if some part of you acknowledges that it's irrational, you're probably thinking that I'm ruining your chances with her, and that she's going to forget about you, and that I'm going to take her away and you'll never see her again."

This girl is on a roll with the accurate descriptions, Konoka knows. Even if she hadn't let herself think it in so many words, those were her exact fears. Hearing Rokuko say them out-loud, however, they seem awfully dramatic. Konoka would like to think that most relationships are pretty healthy and well-balanced. People don't usually demand one-hundred percent of their partner's time, or dictate who they are and aren't allowed to see, and most people don't get completely and utterly absorbed to the point where they would let that happen anyway. And hadn't _she_ been the one to say her main desire was to see Setsuna happy? And if Setsuna is happy with Rokuko, then who is she to object?

Faced with these thoughts, Konoka opens her mouth to admit to her own ridiculous worries. Talking to Rokuko now, it's hard to believe she'd _actually_ been concerned about such things. Rokuko is obviously a warm-hearted, good-humored, sympathetic –

"And you're completely right."

– psychotic bitch.

Konoka's mouth snaps shut and she flounders at the statement. "Excuse me?"

"I said you're right," Rokuko shrugs.

"About which part, exactly?"

"Right to be worried." Rokuko leans her hip against the countertop and folds her arms across her chest, almost like a dare. "I _am_ going to take her away from you."

"What? I – that's – what are you _talking_ about?"

"I'm talking about how she's coming home with me tonight. I wouldn't expect to see her again, if I were you." She says it nonchalantly, like she's talking about her plans to go home and watch TV.

"What are you going to do? Keep her locked up in your basement or something?" Konoka shouts incredulously. After her own misadventure being caged in somebody's attic, the idea doesn't sound quite as ludicrous as it might have before. At the same time, Setsuna had proven herself more than capable of getting out of such situations.

And besides, that couldn't possibly be what this girl means anyway. More likely she's planning on manipulating Setsuna into doing her bidding and not seeing Konoka anymore. Which is ridiculous as well, because Setsuna had also _more_ than proven her loyalty as a friend, and there's no way she could be so easily coerced into something like that through sweet words, and kind gestures, and physical affection…

_Shit. _

"Good luck," Konoka says sarcastically, with far more confidence than she feels. "Setsuna's not a puppy. You can't just train her to never see me again. And what the hell do you think you're doing, anyway?"

Rokuko lifts both hands defensively, although the smile doesn't leave her face. "Woah, calm down there. I'm just trying to be a friend and give you a warning in advance. Besides, I wouldn't have so much confidence in her self-control, if I were you. Did you see her face after I kissed her?"

Konoka had, but that doesn't mean she'd admit to Setsuna's vulnerable and hazy expression, and especially not to this _psycho_, a personality type Konoka feels she's been running into far too often lately.

"She's my friend. She's not going to fall for it."

"Ah, well, you're probably right," Rokuko feigns disappointment, but only for a moment. "But that's where force comes in."

"You have no idea what you're talking about. Setsuna could pile-drive you into the ground if she wanted to –"

"I was actually thinking the bed, but there's something so _animalistic_ about doing it on the floor."

Konoka dutifully ignores that statement. "And if you cared about her, you wouldn't even _consider_ doing something like that."

"I'm hurt," the blonde lifts a hand to her chest in mock pain. "I _do_ care about her. I care about where she is, and what she's doing, and who she's doing it with. But I guess that's not what you mean," she grins, "You mean care about her _as a person_. Then, yeah, I guess you're right."

_What the ever-living hell is wrong with this girl?_ Konoka stares at her, astounded by how quickly Rokuko had reached ten out of ten on the crazy scale.

And personally, she's not going to stand for it. Setsuna has had to go through enough horror in her life without this added nonsense, and despite that, she's still one of the most selfless people Konoka knows. To take advantage of that selflessness, of her naivety, of her kindness, of her _trust_ – the idea makes Konoka's blood boil.

"I'm not going to let you do this."

"Oh, really?" Rokuko gives her an up-and-down look, making a silent statement about the girl's lack of physical strength. "And what are you going to do about it?"

It's an obvious and cliché invitation. Verbal reasoning is apparently out of the question at this point, and Konoka might not have any fighting experience, or any self-defense training of any kind, but she's seen enough chick-flicks and outraged women in college bars to know there are a few tricks that will work regardless. Sure, it's not exactly displaying adult-level, dignified reasoning, but Rokuko hadn't exactly been showing a high degree of maturity either.

So, in one smooth motion, Konoka picks up Rokuko's glass of wine off the counter, and throws it in the girl's face.

…Which somehow doesn't turn out as she'd planned. All she knows is that one moment Rokuko's eyes had widened in alarm, both her hands shooting out as if to protect herself, and the next Konoka is covered in wine.

The wine she'd just thrown in a linear path _away_ from herself.

Rokuko puts her hand to her mouth, biting a knuckle to keep herself from laughing, but she gives up quickly and doubles over against the counter, obviously enjoying herself.

"Oh, I'm so scared," Rokuko manages to get out between fits of giggles. "That was such an impressive display of coordination."

"I don't even – _you_ did that!" Konoka points a finger at her accusingly, ignoring the fact that red wine is dripping off the end of it.

"And how do you suppose _I_ could've possibly made that happen?"

Konoka can say nothing to that, knowing perfectly well that Rokuko _probably_ hadn't bent the laws of physics to her will.

Rokuko takes her silence as an admission of defeat. She grabs some paper towels and tosses them to Konoka, who catches them reflexively.

"Look," the blonde says, her tone light but her words serious. "If you really care about someone, you should probably be better equipped to protect them."

Konoka stares at her, obviously confused by the sudden change.

"It's just a word of advice," Rokuko explains, and then her smile grows as she adds, "Better get home and change, hm?"

Before Konoka can retaliate, Rokuko is already on her way out, leaving Konoka with only the echo of her laughter and a sopping wet shirt.

A shirt which is officially ruined. Konoka looks at her reflection and hasn't regretted wearing white this much since she'd unknowingly walked into a wet t-shirt contest her freshman year. She looks disdainfully at the napkins Rokuko had thrown at her, but uses them anyway, trying to at least get the wine off her face and neck.

"That escalated quickly," she mutters, still wondering how she managed to throw a drink on _herself_.

Eventually, when she deems her appearance as good as it's going to get, she exits the bathroom and walks back to her table, ignoring the strange looks along the way.

"What the hell happened to you?" Asuna asks, understandably confused and concerned.

"I'm still trying to figure that out."

Ayaka and Asuna both wait for her to explain, and Konoka sighs, but indulges them anyway.

"I _may_ have gotten into a fight with Rokuko in the bathroom, and I _may_ have thrown her drink at – well, myself, apparently."

Ayaka goes for the most obvious question first. "How did you –"

"I don't know," Konoka cuts her off, glaring at a point in space.

"Okay," the blonde shifts gears quickly. "Then what were you fighting about? Rokuko looked pretty composed when she walked out of there."

"Of _course_ she did! She's freaking crazy." Konoka figures she probably smells like a drunk anyway, so she may as well complete the picture. She grabs Asuna's margarita and downs it in one gulp.

"What kind of crazy?"

"Crazy like 'crazy girlfriend' crazy, like that woman from Beyonce's movie crazy, crazy like –"

"Okay, okay," Asuna holds up both hands in alarm. "What did she say, exactly?"

"That she's going to take Setsuna home, and that I shouldn't expect to see her again."

Ayaka raises an eyebrow. "Talk about morbid."

"I know! She made it sound like she's planning on killing her, for God's sake, and it's not like that plan will _actually _work."

"Well…" Asuna leans forward, contemplatively resting her chin on her palm. "They _did_ leave already."

Konoka whips around, and sure enough, their table is empty. "We have to go after them."

Ayaka puts a hand over the brunette's soothingly. It might've been patronizing if she didn't look genuinely concerned. "Konoka, maybe that's not the best idea right now. You're worked up. And covered in wine. I don't think you'd be able to make a convincing argument to Setsuna at the moment."

"But – but we can't just let her _go_," Konoka splutters, appalled at the idea.

"I'll go."

The two women look at Asuna, who shrugs. "What? I'm more-or-less a third party here, and Setsuna and I have known each other for a long time. Trust me," she grins confidently at Konoka. "I'll bring her back."

Konoka shakes her head. "I couldn't ask you to do that for me."

"It's no big deal. She's my friend too, and if Rokuko is _actually_ crazy – and I believe you when you say she is," Asuna adds hastily at Konoka's defensive look, "Then I don't want her there either."

"Two good ideas in one year. Maybe I _will_ give you a raise."

Asuna rolls her eyes at Ayaka's remark, then turns to Konoka for approval.

"Are you sure you're okay with this?" The brunette asks, still unsure.

The redhead flashes another confident smile. "Yep! I got this."

**XXX**

Setsuna hadn't planned to leave before the others, but with a few minutes of Rokuko reassuring her that everything was fine, she'd finally agreed to it.

It's getting late now, but with the sun down and a cool breeze blowing, it's a great night to be out. Rokuko had come up with the idea to walk back to her house about two miles away. She'd asked several times if Setsuna was alright with the trek, but considering that two miles isn't very far for someone who finds herself regularly running miles at a time and engaging in extended combat, Setsuna had readily agreed.

"You sure you're not tired or anything?" Rokuko asks worriedly about twenty minutes in. "Last chance to get a cab. The roads from here on out are pretty rural."

Setsuna shrugs, jostling the other girl's arm which is hooked around her elbow. "I actually prefer walking."

"A girl after my own heart," she laughs, and they lapse back into comfortable silence.

_Comfortable_ being the key word. Setsuna hasn't had much experience with people who don't get awkward without conversation. She even feels pressure to make small talk with Konoka sometimes, but Rokuko seems genuinely pleased to simply walk and admire the increasingly tree-filled scenery.

Setsuna finds she really enjoys that. She'd been understandably nervous when Rokuko had invited her back to her house. From what Ayaka and Konoka had been telling her earlier, that was usually foreshadowing for something intimate. But then, they'd also said that would be unusual for a first date…

She shakes her head, deciding she's overthinking it. Rokuko shifts so they're holding hands, and they both duck under a few branches – _since when are there woods here?_ Setsuna wonders, but then, she hasn't exactly done too much exploring in this area. They're nearing the house now – Rokuko points out the plot of land, and in the distance she can see a couple of forgotten lights glowing brightly against the dark background.

"I didn't know places like this existed so close to the city," Setsuna comments lightly.

"Hard to believe, isn't it?"

"Mhmm," she agrees. "It's like your own world or something."

Rokuko smiles, but stays quiet, and Setsuna is more than happy to enjoy the silence once more.

All three seconds of it.

_**Hey!**_

She jumps at the voice and looks around quickly.

"Something wrong?" Rokuko asks, pulling Setsuna closer as they approach the door.

"Ah, no, not really. You didn't say something, did you?"

"Just now? No."

_**Setsuna! You alive?**_

It takes her a moment to realize the voice is actually coming from inside her head, and she shifts away from Rokuko.

"I'll meet you inside," she says with a smile, trying to be nonchalant.

"Are you alright?"

"Yeah, I just… want some air. But go ahead."

Thankfully Rokuko takes her hesitation as nervousness, and the girl squeezes her hand. "Okay. I'll be in the living room; just take a left as soon as you get through the door."

Setsuna nods, watching the girl enter the house and close the door softly behind her. Glancing around to make sure there aren't any open windows, she pulls the pactio card out of her pocket.

_Hey. Is that you?_

_**Duh!**_ Asuna's voice rings loud and clear in her head. _**Where are you?**_

Setsuna looks around, searching for some kind of address or road sign.

_I have no idea_, she admits.

_**That's helpful.**_ Setsuna can practically feel the eye-roll. _**Are you still with that girl?**_

_Yes, but why? Is something wrong?_

There's a moment of silence, and then, _**Uh, no, not really. We were worried about you, is all.**_

_Oh. I'm fine. Rokuko invited me to her house._

_**In the city?**_

_No, actually, we had to pass through some woods._

_**So you're pretty far away then**_, Asuna's voice is quieter, and she sounds almost disappointed.

_Not really, we're only two miles from the restaurant._

A pause. _**But you said you went through some woods.**_

_We did._

_**Two miles from the city?**_

Setsuna looks back at the tree line behind her. _Yeah. Is something wrong?_

For a moment the voice in her head is clouded by static, and she has to pull the card away from herself at the volume of it. She stares at it in confusion, but it looks like it always had, with her portrait staring back at her. She lifts it to her head again.

_What was that?_

_**Nothing, sorry, I got distracted and my thoughts were jumbled. Hey, listen**_**, **Asuna dismisses the subject quickly. _**Just keep in touch, okay? I gotta go.**_

_Okay, I will, but –_

_**See you soon.**_

Setsuna pulls the card away, the communication effectively ended, and puts it in her pocket. _What was that about?_ She wonders, but having been out here already for more time than her excuse warranted, she opens the door and steps inside.

The house, while it'd looked fairly quaint and unassuming from the outside, is beautiful and spacious on the inside. She leaves her shoes next to the doormat and steps onto the wooden floor with socked feet, staring at the décor as she makes the left Rokuko had instructed her too. The hallway walls are lined with paintings, some abstract, some classic, and Setsuna stops to admire one that, by all rights, looks authentically from the Middle Ages.

"You like my collection?" Rokuko calls out to her from the end of the hallway.

"Yes, it's very diverse. Where did you –" Setsuna stops abruptly.

Sometime while she'd been outside, Rokuko had apparently found time to change her clothes. Instead of the formal evening wear she'd sported earlier, she'd dawned a thin, violet colored, silken-looking nightgown. There's a glass of red wine in her hand, and she tilts it up as an invitation.

"Want some?"

From the tone of her voice, Setsuna has trouble deciphering whether she means the wine or something else. "Yes…?"

"Jeez," Rokuko laughs, "Don't sound so excited." She stalks off around the corner into what's presumably the living room, and Setsuna follows after her.

There are more paintings in this room, along with a few statues and ancient looking heirlooms lined along the mantle of the lit fireplace, although Setsuna doesn't take quite as much time to admire them this time. She accepts the glass of wine and takes a sip, finding it pleasantly sweet. Rokuko pats a spot on the couch, and Setsuna sits down next to her.

"You live here by yourself?" Setsuna asks conversationally, and while that hadn't been the topic Rokuko had been angling towards, she indulges the small talk anyway.

"For the most part. My brothers like to drop in unannounced sometimes, but I told them I was busy tonight. They shouldn't bother us."

"That's… good." Setsuna fiddles with her wine glass before finally opting to put it on the table. "So, uh, you and your family get along then?"

Rokuko hums in agreement and puts her glass down next to Setsuna's. She sidles closer until their thighs are touching and Setsuna's pressed against the arm of the couch. She turns sideways to accommodate them in the lack of space, but that only serves to leave her fully facing Rokuko.

"Mostly," the blonde agrees. She leans forward until she's basically lying against the other girl. "We fight, of course, but siblings do. What about you, Setsuna?" She trails her hand down the aforementioned girl's side until it reaches the hem of her shirt. "Do you have any family?"

"No, not – not really." With surprisingly deft movements, Rokuko undoes the bottom two buttons of Setsuna's shirt.

"Mmm, that's too bad. You must get lonely."

Setsuna is finding it hard to concentrate with the hand on her bare stomach. It's not like she hasn't had anybody touch her there before. In fact, Konoka had done it once, although that _had_ been to check on an injury. This kind of gentle touch is different, somehow, and the intentions behind it are unmistakable even to Setsuna.

Somehow she manages to swallow her nervousness. "Sometimes," she admits after some hesitation.

Rokuko, whose gaze had been fixed on her hands underneath the shirt, lifts her eyes to Setsuna's. She smiles gently, but there's something distinctly predatory behind it that makes Setsuna's stomach flip.

"I can help with that, you know."

The blonde leans even further until she's lying on top of the other girl, and when had the rest of Setsuna's buttons come undone? She's not sure, but the warm hand right beneath the edge of her bra isn't helping her memory any. On the somewhat narrow couch, it's a precarious position for Rokuko to be in, so she wraps her arms around the other girl to keep her from falling.

"How?"

_And why am I whispering?_

Even though there's no reason to be, it somehow seems appropriate to keep her voice down. With a sharp movement from underneath her shirt, her bra somehow comes undone, and Rokuko's hand trails up her torso to fill in for the lack of support.

Which somehow translates into the air being made of mud, because Setsuna finds it immediately difficult to catch her breath. She can feel her fingers twitching at Rokuko's waist at the feeling of the hand on her chest, and if she'd been worried about overthinking things before, that fear seems far and distant now. Thoughts? What thoughts?

"Well, there are a few options," Rokuko's words are slow and drawn out. "If you want, we could talk about it." Setsuna makes a noise that can only be assumed to mean _no thank you_. "_Or_," she continues, making use of her left hand to unbutton Setsuna's jeans. "We could do something else, if you prefer."

_Something else sounds nice_, Setsuna's hazy thought sneaks its way to her consciousness, but it still takes her a moment to recognize the rustle of fabric in the background is her shirt hitting the floor.

She wants to respond to Rokuko's question, but her mouth is suddenly occupied. She'd been able to resist it in the restaurant out of sheer surprise; this time, however, she can't help the half-growl, half-groan that manifests as a low rumble from her throat.

She can feel Rokuko smile, and the blonde pulls away, much to Setsuna's short-lived disappointment. Rokuko pushes stray strands of dark hair out of the way and licks the shell of Setsuna's ear, making the girl squirm against her. Travelling downward, she gently bites the skin just above the collarbone, but quickly abandons it for greater ambitions. When she reaches the area between Setsuna's breasts, the girl is actual shaking underneath her, and somehow the obvious inexperience is only a turn-on.

Rokuko tugs at the waistband of Setsuna's jeans, and they both shift so she can tug them off. With both hands splayed on either side of Setsuna's hips, she kisses the girl's stomach down to the waistband of her panties, then skips over them to nip gently at the soft skin of her upper thigh.

"Distracted enough?" Rokuko asks teasingly, her breath hot against Setsuna's skin.

"Ngghh, I dun…" Is the intelligent response. All Setsuna knows is that even though having Rokuko slide her tongue along the inside of her thigh feels _awesome_, and even if it doesn't make too much sense to her at the moment, she'd much rather have that particular motion performed elsewhere.

"Thought so," Rokuko laughs, and almost as if hearing the other girl's thoughts, she presses her tongue over the narrow strip of Setsuna's panties and drags it up, torturously slowly.

Setsuna had nearly given herself a concussion during her little escapade in the closet, but the pleasure from that simple motion dwarfs anything in comparison. The heat, the pressure of another person's body – or body parts, as it might be – and just having somebody there, and willing, and touching her simply because they _want_ to, makes all the difference.

Rokuko pulls away, but only to give her another kiss, and in compensation she shifts so her leg is pressed between Setsuna's, who is shuddering beneath her and quickly turning into even more of an incoherent pile of jelly.

"Feels good?" She asks, and Setsuna regains just enough mental faculties to nod. "I'm glad. We could do this all the time, you know," Rokuko adds, increasing the pressure of her leg and bending down to bite at the other girl's neck.

"Nnnhh?"

"You could stay with me," she clarifies between kisses. "I'll be here. There's no reason to leave."

The words take a second to go through Setsuna's ears, then through the first layers of her addled brain, then finally to the small part that's still functioning. When they get there, though, Setsuna's mind perks up a little.

_There is a reason_. Images of the people counting on her play like a short slideshow: Mana, Evangeline, even Asuna to some extent, and then Konoka. She shifts a little on the couch, distracted by the thought that she shouldn't have left without checking on the girl first. And besides the guilt, it's part of her mission to spend time with Konoka, she knows.

But wasn't this the point? To distract herself from her feelings? And it's working, too. Or, at least, it had been. As long as she periodically returned to see Konoka, their friendship could still remain intact, and _that's_ the main focus of her being here on Earth in the first place. The friendship, not whatever else there is between them. Killing her would be a lot easier if she's able to forget about her feelings for Konoka altogether, and that prospect sounds more than plausible if she stays here long enough.

Her gut twists unpleasantly at the thought.

Konoka had been the first person on Earth to be kind to her, and the first person _ever_ to really befriend her. She'd gone out of her way to make Setsuna happy time and again, and never once, even through their misunderstandings, had she ever felt underappreciated by the brunette.

Being with Rokuko might make her feel good for a short period of time, for however long this lasts, but Rokuko isn't Konoka. She's not the same girl that fought her way through the awkwardness to be around her, and she's not the same compassionate person that went out of her way to try and get to know her, and she's not the one who brought Setsuna to Japan purely to spend time with her, and even if they learn mostly through their own mistakes, _she_ is the one who takes time out of her life to teach Setsuna about the world, and about humans, and about friendship.

Rokuko isn't the girl she wants to be doing this with, or to be with at all, and for all her good-humor and fun-loving attitude, she could never _be_ that girl.

_That_ person is the one who is probably upset and worried and _alone_ in a hotel room.

"Wait," Setsuna sits up abruptly, forcing Rokuko back onto her haunches. "I don't think I should do this."

"You're kind of already doing it." Rokuko looks pointedly at her mostly naked figure.

"Right, well, I should stop," Setsuna clarifies, reaching for her discarded clothing.

"Is something wrong?"

Setsuna looks up from buttoning her shirt. Rokuko's tone is a mix of concern and annoyance – two things that don't particularly mix.

"I'm just worried," Setsuna says carefully. "I'm enjoying myself, I promise, but I shouldn't have left Konoka alone –"

"She was _fine_." Rokuko puts her palm flat against Setsuna's chest, pushing her back into the couch with surprising force. "There's no reason to be worried."

"But I am." Setsuna's words are cautious and gentle. For some reason this situation feels a lot more delicate than it should. "And I think I should go."

"You –" Whatever she'd been about to respond with is cut off by a knock on the door, and Rokuko's expression shifts from annoyed to angry in a second. "I told those idiots not to bother me," she mumbles, getting off Setsuna and adjusting her nightgown. "Wait here."

It sounds more like an order than a request, but Setsuna complies anyway, taking the reprieve to finish buttoning her shirt. She gets up to search for her jeans and spies them thrown to a corner of the room.

There's the sound of the door being yanked open, followed by Rokuko's angry shout, "I thought I said _not_ to –"

Setsuna nearly jumps out of her skin at the loud crash that follows, and giving up on her jeans, she runs down the hallway towards the front door, coming to a skidding stop in her socked feet.

Glancing to her left, Rokuko is lying on her back in a pile of her own paintings, one of which has fallen directly on her head and obscures her face. To her right –

"Asuna?"

"Setsuna," the redhead breathes a sigh of relief. "Are you alright?"

"I'm – I'm fine, but what the hell is going on?"

Asuna is standing in the doorway, feet spread apart in a fighting stance, and in her right hand is their pactio card.

"I followed you."

"Why?" Setsuna asks incredulously. There's a grunt as Rokuko shoves the mess off herself, and Asuna watches the girl carefully.

"At first because Konoka was worried, but after you told me about your little hike, I tracked you using our pactio."

"Okay," Setsuna pauses, taking in that information. "But again, why?"

"Because there are no woods two miles from the city."

Setsuna gives her a skeptical stare. "I walked through them."

"No," Asuna shakes her head and points an accusing finger at Rokuko, who is glaring at the two women with her arms crossed over her chest. "You walked through a spell. This place isn't real."

Rokuko rolls her eyes and unfolds her arms to give a few sarcastic claps. "Well done, Baka Red. I wouldn't have expected an idiot like _you_ to figure that out."

"Hey!" Asuna seethes, raising a fist at the girl. "That was a long time ago! And _you're_ the idiot who got caught by an idiot, so that makes you even _more_ of an idiot!"

"Is she always this stupid?" Rokuko asks, jabbing a thumb in Asuna's direction.

Setsuna glances back and forth between the two, wisely deciding not to answer that question. "Hold on a minute; I'm confused."

The blonde smiles patronizingly at Setsuna. "Of course you are, darling, that's why I like you so much."

Asuna's seething turns to fuming. "Don't talk to her like that! Setsuna is a perfectly respectable – where the hell are your pants?"

Oh. Right. Setsuna had totally abandoned the quest for her jeans after the ruckus. "Uh, not… here."

"Oh God," Rokuko puts a hand on her forehead exasperatedly. "I can't believe this plan got foiled by _you_ two."

"What _plan_?!" Setsuna shouts, tired of the bickering. "Just – let me get this straight. So you, Rokuko," she points a finger at said girl, "Cast a spell to lure me into an alternate world, and if you're casting spells, that means you're…?"

"An angel," she affirms.

"Right. Okay. So Rokuko is… an angel." Setsuna frowns at that development, still thoroughly confused. "And so is Asuna."

"Yep." The redhead gives her a wide grin that's completely inappropriate for the situation.

"Right, right, okay. So, then, why are we fighting…?"

Asuna and Rokuko glance at each other, and the blonde holds up her hands, relinquishing responsibility. "You take this one."

"We may come from the same place, but we're on different sides," Asuna explains, relaxing her stance a little bit. "And we're working for different people."

"Two sides. Different people. Okay," Setsuna takes a mental step back. "So which side is the right side?"

"Now _that_," Rokuko cuts in, "Is a question with a lot of history behind it. Any _sane_ person with even the slightest sense of self-preservation would say my side is clearly the right one. Ask those flower-throwing hippies," she gestures at Asuna, "And you'll get a different answer."

Setsuna tries to understand, but to no avail. "Um. What?"

Asuna rolls her eyes and turns fully to face Setsuna. "Look, I can explain all this later, but you're going to want to side with me on this one, okay?"

"I…" Setsuna trails off. The truth is she's not siding with anyone but Evangeline, whose position is literally from a whole different world. The internal politics of Heaven hardly seem like something she should be considering.

"You care about Konoka, don't you?" Asuna loudly interrupts her thought process.

"Of course."

"They want to use her for something evil. Is that what you want?"

Well, no, that's _not_ what she wants, but that _is_ what she's supposed to be aiming for…

"Ugh," Setsuna shakes her head to dispel the internal arguments. Regardless of the end goal, Konoka's well-being is, at least for now, part of her mission, and Asuna's been a good friend to her. Letting Asuna down and giving up Konoka to a different side would be counterintuitive. "You're right," she says finally, and Asuna smiles gratefully at her.

Rokuko sighs at the exchange. "That's too bad."

"Then why don't you join us?" Setsuna asks eagerly. "We don't have to fight."

The blonde shakes her head, and her voice is laced with obvious regret. "Your naivety really is one of a kind. It's such a shame the universe can't be as simple as you are. But, things being what they are…"

There's a moment's pause after her last word, and then the world itself seems to shimmer and ripple, leaving Setsuna blinking rapidly to clear the spots from her vision.

When she opens her eyes again she's standing on the edge of a massive lake, and Rokuko floats easily above the water a several yards away. The girl reaches into the front of her nightgown and draws a card from her bra before placing it against her forehead.

"This could have ended a lot more pleasurably for the both of us, but now that your friend's crashed our party, I'm going to invite a guest of my own. After all," she says, her smile growing. "Two against one isn't fair, and I'm not into the whole threesome thing."

The spot beside her begins to glow, the light emanating from a central point and rippling outward. There's a bright flash that leaves Setsuna seeing stars again, and when she looks up, she sees a very familiar face.

Until it disappears underneath the water's surface with a good deal of splashing.

"God damnit, Sextum!" Karma shouts, flailing in the water. "I hate it when you summon me like this!"

Rokuko spares him an annoyed glance. "Quit complaining. I thought you'd want to get revenge."

Karma calms down and treads in the water, having spied Setsuna on the shore. His eyes shift over to Asuna, who's standing with her fists raised and ready to pummel someone into the ground.

"She takes cheap shots," He growls, glaring at Setsuna. "I'll take the other one."

Asuna peers at Setsuna in her peripheral vision and nods her head towards Rokuko. "Can you handle her?"

Setsuna shrugs, nonchalant as always. "I have no idea."

"Konoka was right. You really can't answer a yes or no question."

"I'll work on it," Setsuna jokes, much to the redheads surprise.

Asuna smiles back at her, but her expression quickly turns serious. She mumbles a quick "adeat" under her breath, and the card in her right hand shimmers and disappears, replaced by a familiar, massive and intimidating sword.

_I still don't get how she wields that thing_. Setsuna shakes her head, still smiling. _But it suits her._

"You ready?" The redhead calls out. Karma has reached the shore now, and he's taking his time approaching Asuna.

Setsuna hesitates. If she uses her pactio card her wings will undoubtedly appear, and unlike Asuna's, which had flashed into existence for only a brief second before disappearing, hers will be attached to her back. Which is more than an admission of her heritage.

She eyes Rokuko and wishes she'd simply brought a sword with her to avoid this situation. Weaponless and not having a choice, however, she pulls her card out.

Her wings pop out of back and her sword appears in her right hand, and Asuna smirks in amusement.

"Nice wings," she offers casually.

"I… can explain that."

Asuna shrugs and returns her focus to Karma. "Later."

She lunges forward, her huge sword swinging, and she's unbelievably fast considering it must weigh half as much as she does. Even Karma seems taken aback, and he almost doesn't have time to blast her swing back with a gust of wind.

Setsuna's viewing experience is interrupted a second later by a wall of water to the face, and she splutters and wipes the liquid out of her eyes.

"Better focus," Rokuko calls out, "Or this won't last very long."

Setsuna ruffles her feathers to shake the water out of them before taking flight. Karma's arbitrary decision to fight Asuna has worked out in their favor; there's no way the redhead could've gotten to Rokuko without having to swim – and presumably drown in the magic-controlled waters.

Setsuna, however, can reach her with minimal effort. She gets a running start and spreads her wings, taking to the air and just narrowly avoiding another spray. Even twenty feet overhead, however, there's enough water in the lake for Rokuko to shoot geysers of it upwards, and she does a barrel roll to avoid getting her wings soaked again. For the amount of magic she must be using, Rokuko doesn't appear strained at all. _Probably because we're still in her world_, Setsuna recognizes, dodging another attack.

"I guess you're not part duck, huh?" The blonde laughs, her voice sounding distant against the rush of water.

_That would be convenient_, Setsuna admits, but it's unfortunately not the case. If she gets her wings soaked she'll end up plummeting into the lake, making it difficult to approach and attack with her sword; on the other hand, going any higher would leave Rokuko open to attack Asuna without interference.

There's a momentary reprieve as the blonde seems to be reconsidering her tactics as well, and Setsuna spares a few seconds to check on Asuna.

The redhead is pinned to the ground, and Setsuna's eyes widen in momentary panic. _If I dive now I think I can make it –_

Her fears are quickly abated as Asuna swings a leg up and smashes her shin into Karma's privates.

"What the _fuck_!" He howls, grasping himself and shedding a couple of manly tears. "This one takes cheap shots too!"

Asuna jumps to her feet, hauling her sword with her and taking a swing at him. "Then maybe you shouldn't leave yourself open!"

He tries to dodge, but his legs are understandably impaired and the sword clips him.

Unfortunately for Karma, however, a "clip" from Asuna's sword is equivalent to letting a guillotine drop on you from a two story building. Setsuna cringes as memories of being on the receiving end of those blows surface, and sure enough, Karma is gripping the stump where his left hand should've been. The body part is lying on the floor, fingers still twitching.

Rokuko observes the scene and her face twists in annoyance. "Get it together, you idiot!"

Sensing the opportunity, Setsuna takes a chance and dives at full speed with her sword drawn back.

"Hey sis, watch it!"

"What – _shit_ –" Rokuko curses, lifting both hands at the last second to create a defensive wall of water. It's just thick enough to slow down Setsuna's swing, and her sword gets caught in the wave, dragging her down with it.

And straight into the water.

She comes up spluttering beside Rokuko's feet, wings flapping desperately. The blonde stares down at her, expression changing back and forth between thoughtful and piteous.

After a moment she sits down on the water's surface, offering a hand to Setsuna, who, unable to swim well with the weight of her wings dragging her down, grasps onto it.

"I really do like you, you know," Rokuko says conversationally.

Setsuna takes a moment to catch her breath before responding. "I like you too," she replies honestly. Despite how this date turned out, she really _did_ have a good time up until this point. And even if Rokuko isn't Konoka, she's still more than likeable by her own merits. When she isn't being crazy, anyway.

"Then why don't you join us?" Rokuko asks. "It's really not as cut and dry as your friend makes it sound. We have our reasons, just like you do. They're not bad ones."

The swordsman takes a moment to think about that. "I believe you. I just can't do that to Asuna."

"And to Konoka," Rokuko finishes the thought for the other girl, shaking her head at the irony of it all. Completely ignoring the inherent seriousness of their situation, she grasps Setsuna's hand and plays with her fingers, gently curling and uncurling them in a thoughtless, almost tender way. "You're going to wind up doing the same thing, you know. Konoka's going to die one way or another, and her next life isn't going to be very pleasant no matter where she winds up."

Setsuna takes in Rokuko's genuinely open expression before averting her gaze to the water, which is beginning to look more and more like a very comfortable grave to forget all her troubles in. "I know that," she whispers.

"Then why not have some good to show for it? If my side wins, Konoka's soul will end up saving millions of lives. Doesn't that sound worth it?"

"Yes," Setsuna admits wearily, "It does."

"Then it makes sense for you to join us, doesn't it?"

Setsuna nods again. "Yes, but…"

"…But you're not going to," Rokuko finishes. Setsuna doesn't respond, and she drops the girl's hand back into her lap. "Wanting to spend as much time with a person before they die, even if that just makes it hurt more in the end... It's awfully romantic."

Setsuna shakes her head. "It's illogical."

"Things like that usually are," Rokuko rolls her eyes, although her smile is sympathetic. "But even if I understand it, if that's the way things are, one of us is going to have to die here."

"But I don't _want_ you to die!" Setsuna shouts, anger and frustration rising quick and unbidden in her veins. "I don't want _anyone_ to die; I just want everyone to be happy, God _damnit_, and I'm sick of death, and I'm sick of pain, and I'm sick of _life_," she finishes defiantly and stares at Rokuko as if expecting her to challenge that statement.

"Sick of life, huh?" The blonde laughs at that. "How very human of you."

Setsuna's expression changes into what could only be described as a pout. "Aren't you sick of it too? Is it strange that I disagree with you, but I also don't want you to die?"

"Not at all. I don't want you to die either."

"Then why does one of us have to?"

Rokuko takes a deep breath and tilts her head back to stare at the sky, and she suddenly looks just as tired as Setsuna feels. "There's a lot you don't know yet, and without that knowledge, you can't understand why things like this have to happen. I know it's frustrating, but you have to take action regardless."

There's a loud and decidedly unmanly shriek, and both women turn just in time to see Asuna cleave a tree in two. Karma hits the deck to avoid being cut in half, but now crippled and on the ground, the fight is basically over.

They look away, neither particularly wanting to watch the final blow.

Setsuna speaks first. "We have to kill each other."

"Yes."

"…Do we have to hate each other?"

Rokuko laughs softly at that. "No, we don't."

Setsuna nods. "Then I think we'll be okay."

"I certainly hope so." The blonde levitates back up and stretches, leaving Setsuna to tread water once again. "Are you ready?"

"No, but I guess I have to be."

Rokuko tilts her head to the side thoughtfully. "Well said," she admits, but when she turns to Setsuna again, all traces of mirth are gone. "Setsuna?"

"Yes?"

"Don't hesitate."

Setsuna doesn't have time to consider that statement, let alone ask what it means. A shadow appears over the lake and she looks up at the giant wave about to crash on top of her. Panicking, she reaches out and grabs the first thing her fingers find purchase on – Rokuko's ankle.

They both gasp in a lungful of air and go under with Rokuko kicking her leg in an attempt to free herself of Setsuna, whose grips only tightens. After another violent but unsuccessful attempt, the blonde finally gives up, turning to face Setsuna and pushing a palm away from her. The magic-enhanced shove sends Setsuna flying backwards through the liquid, almost to the bottom of the lake, but she still doesn't let go.

"Really?" Rokuko mouths at her, looking rightfully annoyed.

Setsuna shrugs and attempts to through a punch with her free hand, which does absolutely nothing with the water slowing her down. They spend a minute in a slow-motion wrestling match, and although Setsuna is clearly the stronger of the two, with the water in Rokuko's control, it's becoming increasingly clear that the fight is becoming one-sided.

They both seem to recognize their lack of oxygen at the same time and make a break for breathable air. Reaching the top, Setsuna gasps and looks around, realizing she'd lost her grip just as she'd broken through the surface.

She spots Rokuko floating a few feet away, her hands moving quickly in a series of spell-casting gestures. The water ripples and splashes as it begins to swirl around her, and Setsuna realizes belatedly that she's sitting in the center of a giant whirlpool.

Struggling is futile, and she takes another deep breath before she's dragged under. Her back hits the lake's floor and sticks there, the water pressure keeping her pinned. Setsuna shifts a little, trying to move any of her limbs, but finds the effort in vain. She opens her eyes and stares at the watery tornado swirling above her.

It's rather pretty, really. Although they'd entered the house in the evening, this new world is lit up by sunlight, and it makes the water shine a beautiful bluish color. There's debris caught up in the whirlpool, and the sun's light reflects off the surface of her sword a few feet above her. She watches it spin around, but unable to move, can't do anything about it.

_I guess this is it_, she thinks passively. The pressure in her ears at twenty feet under the surface is painful, and she breathes out a little bit to equalize it. She watches her oxygen float up in little bubbles.

_Maybe it's good that I'm going to lose._ Rokuko _had_ said that her side plans to use Konoka's soul to save millions of lives. That had been Evangeline's goal as well, but as long as it's for the same purpose, does it really matter which lives are saved? It's not like Setsuna has any love for her kind.

Except for Evangeline. _She's going to be pissed._ She can imagine the little vampire fuming and sputtering and throwing her hands around in wild gestures, annoyed at Setsuna's failure. She's never been sure why Evangeline seems to care so much about what happens to anyone but herself, but the fact that she _does_ care is obvious even to her, no matter how much Evangeline tries to hide it behind snarky comments and sarcastic eye rolls.

Then there's Konoka, of course. It's still hard for Setsuna to imagine that someone would care enough about her to cry over her death, but it's easy to picture Konoka receiving the news – whatever fabricated story Asuna can come up with – and bursting into tears. She'd said more than once that Setsuna is her first and best friend, and losing that will likely be the most painful thing she'll experience in this lifetime.

But, at the very least, now she'll have Ayaka and Asuna to support her.

Setsuna frowns at the thought of Asuna, probably pacing at the shoreline, powerless to help. Entering the water now would be a death wish, especially with that giant sword dragging her down.

Her lungs begin to burn and she closes her eyes.

During her fight with Shiro, she'd done everything in her power to prevent the kind of pain he'd suffered. Watching someone you care about suffer and die must be excruciating, and even though death hardly has any permanence to people like Setsuna and Asuna, Setsuna will probably be stuck in Hell until the planet disintegrates. In all likelihood, they won't ever see each other again.

Setsuna's head is swimming from lack of oxygen, and she knows it'll be less than a minute before she's forced to take a breath. She opens her eyes, blinking in an attempt to clear away the spots. There's something in her peripheral vision, and she realizes she must be hallucinating now.

She sees streaks of red, the blue of Asuna's eyes, Asuna's boot by the side of her face, the hand on her wrist –

Wait.

Setsuna's eyes widen and she blinks rapidly once more, trying to get the hallucination to disappear. It doesn't, and the tugging on her arm feels very, very real.

She stares up at Asuna, eyes wide with panic. The redhead is somehow on her feet, though with obvious effort, and she's straining to pull Setsuna off the floor.

Setsuna summons the little strength she has left to shake her head furiously. _Go back!_ She wants to yell. _There's no reason for both of us to die here._

As if hearing her thoughts, Asuna pauses in her efforts to give Setsuna a sheepish, almost embarrassed grin.

"You're my friend," she mouths slowly so that Setsuna will understand.

But Setsuna _doesn't_ understand. It's completely nonsensical for both of them to die here; Asuna should live, kill Rokuko, and go home to continue her own life with Ayaka. She remembers her conversation with Rokuko not ten minutes before, how the girl had warned her that things like this usually don't make logical sense.

And indeed, there's no way Asuna is going to be able to pull them both up and make it back to shore in time. They're both going to die here, and the redhead should know it – _does_ know it, judging by the look on her face.

It's impossible, it's illogical, it's downright _stupid_ to try and rescue her from this, and no sane, practical person would consider attempting it.

But Asuna is.

Setsuna stares at her friend, who's gritting her teeth, who knows the odds and faced them anyway, who plans to die just to prove the strength of their bond, and realizes quite suddenly that _I would do the same damn thing._

She wants to laugh at that. _I guess we're all nuts._

She clenches her jaw and strains to sit up, ignoring the way her muscles protest.

Setsuna is sick of death, but she'd die for her friends, and she's even more sick of life, but when their futures depend on it, she'll _live_ for them, too.

For Evangeline, for Konoka, for Ayaka and Asuna, she gets on her hands and knees, and then to her feet. It _does_ matter which lives are saved, she realizes, and she'll fight for the ones she cares about, no matter which side she has to take.

Asuna lets go of her wrist and the two stare at each other. The redhead's expression is resigned, and she shrugs. They're both out of oxygen and there's no way they'll make it back to shore, but thoughts rush through Setsuna's mind: Evangeline's ambitions, images of her friends, and finally the memories of her own painful, torturously long existence. She clenches her jaw determinedly. _I refuse to let these people suffer like I have_.

Her wings start to move, their speed quickening, and she struggles against the water, against the odds, against the downright impossibility of it all. _I refuse I refuse I refuse –_ her mind recycles that thought over and over again, and even with the whirlpool pressing down against her, she pushes harder and harder.

The water swirls back and forth against the force, and despite what common sense might dictate, it begins to part around them. She flaps her wings furiously, disrupting Rokuko's whirlpool until the water is cleared away from them, leaving them both sitting in an underwater air bubble.

Setsuna takes a gasping breath, Asuna following suit, and even though the beating of her wings slows down, their pocket of space doesn't crumble inwards.

There's a force holding the water back, its radius centered around Setsuna, and Asuna looks around with wide eyes. It's not light, or color, and it has no definable shape; it's not visible at all, but rather a feeling, and the redhead shakes her head disbelievingly.

"Holy shit. Your aura is incredible."

"You'll have to tell me what that means later," Setsuna responds, still straining with effort. She turns to Asuna. "Go back to shore."

"You think I came all the way out here to go back without you? Are you _nuts_?"

Setsuna remembers her earlier thought and laughs at that. "Seems like it," she says simply. "Now go back. I can handle her."

Asuna stares at her friend, then at the wall of water and the shore beyond it. She wouldn't be much help half-drowned and unable to even get a good punch in, but she's worried regardless.

"You're sure?" She asks.

"Positive."

Asuna takes in Setsuna's determined expression and shakes her head slowly, laughing under her breath and with something like pride shining in her eyes, then turns away.

"See you on dry land!" She calls over her shoulder. She takes a breath and walks out into the water towards the shore.

When she's a good distance away Setsuna takes a second to center herself. What Asuna had referred to as an aura is palpable around her, but she's not sure how it appeared or how to control it. She reaches out a hand to see if it moves, much like how Rokuko's spells work, but its diameter stays consistent.

Setsuna stares at Rokuko fifteen feet above her, and is somehow okay with the fact that she has no idea what she's doing; all she knows is that, whatever it is she's planning, she'd better get it done. _I have to_, she reminds herself, and she clenches her fist and feels whatever power that's inside her course through her muscles.

So she inhales, squats down, and with every ounce of strength she can muster, shoves off the floor of the lake.

The force of her push is far stronger than what she'd intended, being unused to her apparent strength, and she shoots out of the lake and past Rokuko, who stares up at her in open-mouthed surprise.

Setsuna doesn't give her time to retaliate. She swoops down at an angle, her wings miraculously dry and her fist drawn back, and punches Rokuko straight in the chest.

There's a strangled choking noise, and Setsuna can feel the other girl's sternum break with the force of her hit. The blonde goes flying back, shooting over the water like a skimmed stone, her body coming to a skidding stop on the shore.

Setsuna glides over and lands, glad to feel solid, dry ground underneath her feet.

But whatever energy she'd had before quickly fades at the sight of Rokuko's limp body on the ground. Her arm is clearly broken at the elbow from her rough landing, and her head is tilted to the side, blood and spit coming in thick rivulets out of her mouth. Her eyes roll over to Setsuna now standing at her side.

Rokuko goes to say something, but her face contorts with pain and she coughs violently, spewing more blood into the dirt. Setsuna watches, wishing she could be impassive. She's seen more than her fair share of blood and gore, but staring down at the girl she'd been having a pleasant dinner with a few hours earlier, the sight makes her weary right down to her bones.

_We could have been friends, _Setsuna thinks, and the tiredness seeps even further into her, dropping her to her knees.

And by all rights they _should_ have been friends. Even if Rokuko had spent the last half hour trying to kill her, she's still the same girl that Setsuna had laughed with over burning napkins and spilled ice cream and awkward pre-sex conversation, and the same one that really, _genuinely_ likes her, for and in spite of her flaws.

Setsuna hadn't known it at the time, but what she'd been thinking earlier this morning about relationships being built on mutual understanding is fitting now; Rokuko really does understand where she comes from and who she is. In a different world, at a different time, their relationship –friendship or otherwise – may really have worked out beautifully.

She wants to say something, but finds herself having to clear her throat several times to get it out, and by the time she's able to speak, she can't remember what she'd wanted to say in the first place.

Rokuko seems to understand this and smiles as best she can, although it appears as something like a grimace. "Kill me," she manages, the words coming out raspy and slow. "I told you… not to… hesitate."

Setsuna averts her eyes, struggling for words. "I'm sorry," she finally says. "I wish this wasn't happening. I wish – I wish things could be different –"

There's a hand on her arm, and Setsuna finally looks up, meeting Rokuko's gaze. "Then make them different," the blonde says, and her arm drops to the ground again. "Now hurry up… and kill me already."

Setsuna can't help but laugh despite how inappropriate it seems. With nothing left to do but take the suggestion, and ignoring the tiredness in her body, she places a hand on Rokuko's chin and the other on the side of her face.

"See you again," she says firmly, and breaks the girl's neck in one smooth motion.

**XXX**

The landscape change is abrupt, and Setsuna looks up to find herself in the middle of a deserted park; it's night time again, and they're too far from the streetlights to be worried about exposure. The crickets seem deafeningly loud after the fight, and though she can feel Asuna's presence a couple of feet away, she doesn't look up from Rokuko's lifeless body.

Asuna shifts her weight nervously. Comfort has never been her forte. "Are you alright?" She finally asks.

"Nothing is alright."

The redhead nods, understanding what she means.

Minutes pass and then Setsuna stands up, looking around for her sword. She spies it a few yards away and walks over to it. "Abeat," she whispers, and the blade and her wings disappear. She's left holding her pactio card, and she feels too tired to even turn around.

Asuna walks over, placing a hesitant hand on her shoulder. "We should go home," she says gently. "They'll be wondering where we are."

_They_. That's right. If she's not asleep by now, Konoka is probably up in bed alone, fretting about Setsuna's absence like a worried mother. She smiles at the silly thought, glad to have something – some_one_ – to look forward to.

They start towards home together, walking side-by-side, but Asuna slows down only a few steps into their journey.

Her gaze is focused somewhere straight ahead in the distance, and she doesn't turn to face her companion. "Hey, Setsuna?"

"Yeah?"

"You're still not wearing any pants."

"Hm," the swordsman agrees, looking down at her bare legs. "You're right."

With that off her chest, the redhead starts once more towards home, Setsuna by her side.

**XXX**

* * *

**A/N: **So… not all full of KonoSetsu as you might have expected. This chapter is important though, I promise! This is a big turning point for the story, as you all will see when I finish the next chapter.

Also, Sextum/Rokuko is _not_ my character, but as I said in chapter 7, I _did_ take the liberty of giving her a personality of my choosing, since she doesn't really have one in the _Negima_ manga. Her alias is a combination of "Roku," Japanese for "six," as in "Sextum," and "Ko," which is something like "daughter" or "child," according to interwebs. (Obviously I don't speak Japanese :P).

Thanks for reading everyone! Please leave a review on your way out


	10. We Were Never in Kansas to Begin With

**A/N: **Welcome to **the beginning of the end!** This story is coming to a close now, although that means there will still be about 3 chapters left if all goes according to plan, and I didn't leave _too_ many plot holes throughout, haha.

Thank you all for hanging in there with me, and for all the lovely reviews – seriously, they keep me going. I'll have a hard time getting anything written now that I'm back in school, so any encouragement is much appreciated.

Happy reading!

* * *

**XXX**

**We Were Never in Kansas to Begin With, So...**

**XXX**

* * *

They're sitting across from each other in an unusually tense silence. It's warm today, and sips of iced coffee fill the empty air between them.

Setsuna clears her throat. "Konoka is thinking about extending our trip to spend more time with you guys."

Asuna nods. "That's good news."

"Yeah."

They'd never been awkward around each other before, or at least not since their initial meeting, and Asuna taps her fingers on the table anxiously. There's an elephant in the room, and while she's usually the first person to point those out and scream _"that thing is huge!",_ her typical tactlessness is absent today. Still, neither of their lives can continue as normal without talking this out.

There are crystals of raw sugar in the bottom of her cup, and she stirs the drink restlessly. Gathering her energy, she opens her mouth to speak, but Setsuna beats her to the punch.

"I'm sorry," she blurts out. "For lying, I mean. It's just that – well…" She trails off, worrying her lip in thought. This would be an easier conversation to have if she had any authority to speak her mind, but that's not the case. Setsuna is hardly at liberty to reveal Evangeline's plans, or what her mission is, or anything at all really. Mana would have her head if she knew Setsuna had let things slip up _this_ far. She cringes. _That_ is going to be a far more unpleasant conversation.

Thankfully, Asuna seems to understand, and she speaks around her straw. "You mean about the wings."

"Right," Setsuna nods and stares at the table. "I guess you've already figured out that I'm a – that I come from –"

Asuna has to smile at the stuttering. It's good to know that despite all this, some things simply won't change. "You're a demon," she finishes for the other girl, and Setsuna's face lights up in an obvious blush.

"Half," she mumbles. "My mother was human. I think."

"I know."

Setsuna's eyebrows shoot up in surprise, and she finally makes eye contact with the other girl. "You know?"

Asuna shrugs. "I've known the whole time."

"But what about at the hot springs, when you were asking about Shiro and I?"

"I was trying to get you to confess."

Setsuna gives her a blank stare, trying to take this in. "So you've known?"

"Yep."

"The whole time."

"Yep."

"Well, that would explain why you weren't surprised last night, at least."

"Nagi knows too," the redhead explains easily. "And we also know who you're working for. And, while I'm at it, we also know why you're here."

"You – you do?"

"Yep."

"Oh," Setsuna pauses, taking it in. "Well… aren't you going to, you know, stop me or something?"

"That's what I'm _supposed_ to do." Asuna leans back in her chair and folds her arms over her stomach, having finished her drink already. "But I guess we're both breaking orders now, aren't we?"

The redhead is grinning at her conspiratorially, and Setsuna smiles back, relief washing over her. "So we can still be friends?"

"Well _duh_! You think I'm risking my ass because I enjoy it?"

"I guess not," Setsuna admits, but her smile fades quickly. "But I still don't understand what's going on. If you knew the whole time, why didn't you say anything?"

Asuna sighs at that. "I know this might sound weird coming from me, but Nagi can be a little… headstrong. He's still my boss, but he tends to jump into things without thinking, and he puts a lot of faith in what he sees."

"Which means he doesn't consider what he's _not_ seeing," Setsuna finishes, and the redhead nods at her.

"Right. Nagi hasn't been back to Earth since he died, so he has no idea what really goes on down here nowadays; he only knows of the things other guardians tell him, and a lot of them are narrow-minded idiots."

"So what makes you different?" Setsuna asks, but then realizing how her question could be misconstrued, adds quickly, "Not that you aren't, but you're a guardian too."

"I wasn't always. I had a life on Earth once, you know."

_Whoops_. Setsuna had almost forgotten that most angels were once strictly human.

"And how was that?"

"Really, really shitty. Do you know what it's like to be an orphan in the early 1900s?" She doesn't pause, and she answers her own question. "It sucks. My adoptive parents weren't the greatest people."

"And that makes you open-minded?" Setsuna asks, slightly confused by the seeming lack of relevance.

Asuna nods. "When you grow up in a really shitty way, with people looking down on you all the time, you learn pretty quickly what does and doesn't matter. And where someone is born, or what they're born into, definitely falls into the second part."

Setsuna can certainly agree with that. "That is surprisingly wise."

"I have my moments."

Mutual understanding passes between them, and Setsuna is fully aware of how lucky she is.

"So," Asuna continues, not wanting the atmosphere to get too cheesy, "The short version of the situation is that everyone in Heaven assumes you guys," she points a finger in Setsuna's general direction, "Are completely irrational and selfish bastards. I'm going to go ahead and assume you have a better reason for wanting Konoka's soul?"

"To save our planet," Setsuna explains, trying to ignore the feeling that she's betraying several people's trust. "Hell is dying. My boss's plan is to use her magic to escape Hell and bring us to Earth."

Asuna takes another sip of her drink and swallows, taking her time to think. "And what happens to Konoka?"

"I don't know," Setsuna admits, looking perturbed. "No one's told me."

The redhead looks just as uneasy about that. "I guess we'll have to find out. But," she adds, "The rest sounds reasonable to me."

"I think so too. Which doesn't explain why Rokuko and Karma are so insistent on stopping me."

Asuna huffs at that. "Political bullshit that minions like me aren't really allowed in on. I'm not even sure Nagi knows that particular group exists – _I_ only know about it by accident."

"How can you know something by accident?"

"It's kind of a long story…" Asuna trails off, averting her eyes, and is that a blush? Setsuna waits patiently for her to continue. "Alright, fine, I'll tell you. When I got to Heaven and enlisted to be a guardian, I wasn't exactly _great_ at it."

"Okay…"

"Alright! I _sucked_, okay?" The redhead defends herself preemptively, clearly embarrassed. "I was physically stronger than most people, but I can't use magic to save my life. Literally. Do you know how many times I died during combat training?"

"Uh…"

"At _least_ forty. And that damn woman, Rokuko, she trained me and a bunch of new recruits."

Setsuna jumps in at the pause, "Wait, I thought she wasn't a guardian?"

"She isn't. She's a go-between for Nagi and his boss. That's how her little circle manipulates all the information."

"Okay," Setsuna processes that, but it just leads to more questions. "So whose Nagi's boss? And how do you even know that?"

"I'm getting to that," Asuna gripes, waving a hand at her impatiently. "Nobody really knows who his boss is – or nobody at my level of authority, anyway, or Nagi's. And the reason I know who she is and what she does is because I stayed behind the class one day to train, and I ended up overhearing a conversation between Rokuko and one of her brothers."

"Did she find out?"

"I _tried_ to stay quiet so they wouldn't notice, but, well you know me…" Right. Asuna and quiet go together like… Setsuna quickly gives up on an analogy, the point having been made. Seeing the understanding in the other girl's eyes, Asuna continues. "Exactly. They started jabbering about how Hell is going to be useless soon and about using humans like generators, and I jumped out and started yelling, and Rokuko wasn't too nice to me during training after that."

Setsuna tilts her head to the side curiously. "Is that why she called you Baka Red?"

Asuna nods reluctantly. "Yeah, me and a few others who were bottom of the class, but she dubbed _me_ their leader, like a degrading, unsuccessful parody of the Power Rangers or something." She pauses here, and just when Setsuna thinks it's safe to speak, the redhead bursts with renewed fury. "You know what it's like? It's like those off-brand Fruit Loops that taste like wax and corn starch –sure, it may _claim _to have all the same flavors, and that stupid cross-eyed toucan that is _not_ Toucan Sam may be adorable on the box, but it still _sucks_. I mean, do I seem stupid to you?"

"I –"

"Of course I don't."

Setsuna clears her throat and wisely changes the subject. "So what did she mean about Hell and humans?"

"I have no idea," Asuna responds harshly, still in aggressive mode. She takes a breath to calm down. "I didn't know who I could safely ask about it. She threatened to make sure I'd never graduate training, so I didn't have much of a choice."

Setsuna takes a sip of her watered down coffee, the ice having melted completely a few minutes ago. _I bet Evangeline knows_, she thinks idly, but the idea of asking her would also mean having to admit to this conversation. At the same time, Setsuna firmly hates secrets by now, and keeping something from her boss and one of the most important people in her life makes her feel heavy with guilt just thinking about it.

With that thought in mind, she catches Asuna's eye and speaks. "I could ask my boss. She'd probably know."

"Wouldn't that give you away?"

Setsuna shrugs. "I would've told her eventually anyway. I may as well frame it in a productive light. If she tells us what's actually going on, maybe we can _both_ help."

Asuna considers that, but she looks slightly unnerved by the proposition. "She's not going to kill me, is she?"

"Probably not."

"_Probably_ not?"

"I think she'd just insult me and give me some impossible task as revenge."

Asuna grins. "Your boss sounds awesome."

"She is," Setsuna says with a smile, despite how _not_ smile-worthy her punishment is probably going to be. "We should go back to the hotel; I can ask her then. And I still haven't really talked to Konoka since last night." Setsuna gets up to throw her cup away and turns back to Asuna nervously. "Do you think she's alright?"

Konoka is definitely _not_ alright, judging by how upset she'd been last night. She's not one to fly off the handle and yell or anything, but the anger isn't the intimidating part, it's the disappointment and sadness that's going to be rough to deal with.

"Nope," the redhead says bluntly. "If I were you, I'd be prepared for tears."

Setsuna, although not at all irked by the honesty, can't resist the opportunity.

"Whatever you say, Baka Red."

"_It was a long time ago!_"

The footsteps next to Setsuna stop abruptly, and she turns to see Asuna standing rooted to the ground and fuming.

"After it happened, I showed that _whole_ class what I was made of! I'm way stronger now; I could probably take down a whole building with just my fists!"

Setsuna's mirth quickly turns to concern as Asuna walks over to the nearest shop and draws her arm back –

"Asuna – wait, I was just kidding –"

– And gives it her hardest punch.

Which does nothing except make her hand swell up.

Setsuna watches her friend writhe in pain and shakes her head at the display.

"I'm really glad we're still friends," she grins.

Asuna scowls at her. "Oh, shut up."

**XXX**

Regardless of Asuna's belittling nickname, she'd been right in her prediction.

Konoka _is_ upset, or at least, she had been last night.

The anger and jealousy that had clouded her judgment during dinner had dissipated after she'd gotten back to the hotel and Ayaka had left – leaving her free to follow Setsuna without interference.

And she had. That's what worried friends do, after all. (Or jealous ones.)

What had followed was a string of events that left her increasingly more concerned for Setsuna's well-being, and then for her own. It's not like she's still secretly worried that her temporary roommate is a serial killer or a drug dealer, but what happened last night left her with an undeniable eery feeling, like something very secretive, and very _bad_, was happening right under her nose.

She hadn't known where she was going, so she'd taken a cab straight back to the restaurant and then flipped a coin to decide which direction to go in. _It's not like I'm going to barge in anyway, but at least looking around will distract me for a while,_ she'd figured, and set out on her aimless journey.

It didn't take long, however, to spot Asuna's very conspicuous red hair and bell ornaments on the nearly empty sidewalk. She'd been turned towards a building, oddly enough, and though Konoka couldn't get a good look at her face, worry and frustration were emanating from her. Konoka was about to call out and ask what she was doing, but then Asuna had taken off in a brisk walk, forcing Konoka to jog in an attempt to catch up.

She almost did, too, except her urge to make her presence known disappeared when Asuna had stopped outside of a park and looked around to make sure no one was watching.

Konoka wouldn't consider herself a nosy person by nature, but who _wouldn't_ want to find out what she was doing after something like that?

What happened next, though, left her with more questions than answers.

They were far enough from the streetlights that it was fairly dark, and Konoka had to squint to make out her friend's outline as she walked into the middle of a field –

And promptly disappeared.

It sounds ridiculous, sure, but Konoka had seen it with her own eyes. Mostly. It _had_ been awfully dark, but Asuna had been more or less visible one moment, and the next she'd taken a stop and was simply _gone_.

Konoka had blinked several times, rubbing her eyes to make sure she'd seen correctly, but Asuna remained out of sight. There was no where to disappear to though; no trees, no corners of buildings, no forest-lined paths, just a field, which Konoka had walked into and looked around, finally calling out for her friend.

"Asuna?" She'd shouted, but sure enough, the girl didn't reply.

Understandably disconcerted, Konoka had opted to stall for time and wait in a nearby 24-hour café. With nothing else to do, she'd ordered a diet soda, picked up a newspaper, and sat down to read.

And that's when the eery feeling started.

On the first page of the badly translated newspaper was a picture of a crime scene barred off by police tape. Not unusual for the news, sure, and neither was the headline citing some kind of murder and theft, but what had caught her eye was a picture of the stolen item.

She'd squinted at it, trying to figure out why it was so familiar. She scanned the newspaper headline: "Murderer/Thief Still at Large; Museum Curators Offer Public Plea for Return of Stolen Artifact." The picture, she realized, was of the artifact in question.

A photo of a silver, black-lacquered crow.

The same one she'd picked up off the floor the night Setsuna had supposedly gone for a walk and fell on her face – which still, by the way, didn't explain the ripped up sweatshirt she'd been carrying.

Now Konoka, not being much a conspiracy theorist and often preferring the simpler explanations, had figured it was simply a coincidence. A famous artifact from a museum would surely produce some replicas sold at souveneir shops, just like Setsuna had said she'd gotten hers from.

She really wanted to believe that, and it _is_ the simplest and most likely explanation, but two pieces of confounding evidence popped up in her mind.

The first was the fact that she'd found Setsuna's laptop open to a map of the museum – something a thief would need to have memorized in order to make such a heist – and the second was the boy she'd run into outside the hotel that morning. He'd mentioned something about a "sun crow," although she couldn't remember exactly what, but reading the article about the legend of Yatagarasu, the line was too fitting to be just a coincidence.

Which leaves her with two theories. The first is that the stars happened to align that day and she'd found herself the victim of an extremely worrying set of coincidences. The second is that Setsuna is a murderer and thief.

She's not sure which is simpler, but one is certainly more believable than the other.

Or so she'd initially thought, until other things started to fall into place; things that were almost _too_ conveniently explanatory to ignore.

Because Setsuna _is_ a murderer, at least to some degree. She'd killed Shiro by punching him through a _house,_ for God's sake, and she'd fought Tsukuyomi with frenzied bloodlust that was too well-performed to simply be spontaneous. And sure, Shiro's death was necessary for their survival, and Setsuna had certainly had more than a good reason to do it, but the fact of the matter is that she'd done it without batting an eye. It'd been easy, almost thoughtless, how she'd cut his throat and slammed her fist into his chest with the obvious intent to kill him.

And while Setsuna isn't a _charming_ psychopath, as Konoka had already decided when they'd first come to Japan, her awkwardness and general apathy certainly point towards some sociopathic tendencies.

The theft is the only part that doesn't fit. Setsuna has less of a material interest than the vast majority of people, and she hardly seems concerned with money besides the fact that she needs it to live. _So why would she go through such lengths to steal it?_ According to the newspaper, the crow was made in the 1800s, way before Setsuna was born (duh), and the girl had never been to Japan before (or so she said), which makes sentimental value very unlikely.

The other explanation, and the one that makes Konoka feel like she's in the climax of an episode of _Law & Order_, is that she'd stolen it for someone else.

Someone like Evangeline.

Konoka remembers the conversation she'd half overheard between the two, and how Setsuna had said something about killing, and hadn't that been the night after the murder/theft occurred?

And then to top it all off, she'd left the café just in time to see Asuna and Setsuna walking home, soaking wet and exhausted. And without pants, in Setsuna's case.

If they weren't who they were – Setsuna, who had just been on a date with someone she clearly enjoyed spending time with, and Asuna, who clearly has no interest in Setsuna and is decidedly straight – she might've thought they went for a skinny dip make-out session or something. But they _are_ who they are, and besides that, there isn't a lake at that particular park.

Konoka puts a hand on her head to ward off a headache. _What the hell is going on?_

She'd been surfing the web on her laptop, trying and failing to distract herself, and she finally closes it. Her stomach twists uneasily, and she nearly jumps out of her skin at the sound of someone sliding a key card into the hotel room door.

Setsuna steps into the room and puts her things on the bedside table. "Hey," she says hesitantly.

"Hey." Konoka smiles, trying to be nonchalant. "How was your night? When I came back from my walk you were fast asleep."

Setsuna looks away sheepishly. "Yeah, I had a long night."

Despite the much more serious thoughts running through her mind, Konoka can't help but ask. "Did you guys… _do_ anything?"

"Kind of. We just talked for a while, and then… we didn't get very far," she says finally, and Konoka nods, trying not to let her relief show through.

"What happened?"

"She – I – it didn't work out." Setsuna's tone is blunt and doesn't leave much room for questions, which is just another oddity in a sea of weirdness, because she'd never been forceful with Konoka before…

"I see."

The two stare at each other, a blanket of awkward silence falling over them.

"I have to –"

They both spoke at the same time, and Konoka giggles nervously.

"What were you going to say?"

"I have to make a phone call," Setsuna finishes her sentence.

"Ah, okay, well I have to go anyway," Konoka says quickly, standing up and grabbing her clutch.

She steps out and takes a breath to steady herself. She wants to stay and listen just as much as she doesn't, and so she steps away from the door without giving herself time to think about it.

**XXX**

Konoka spends about half an hour wandering around the city. With nowhere to go and nothing to do, she drifts aimlessly down the sidewalk, occasionally looking into windows and stopping in shops.

She doesn't _want_ to think about how easy it would be to stand outside her room and eavesdrop on Setsuna's conversation, and she doesn't _want_ to think about whether her best friend might be crazy. She does though, and the thoughts eat away at her until she finally decides that there's no better way to get rid of an assumption than through proving it wrong. _Or confirming it_, her pessimistic side whispers traitorously.

She reaches for her phone, tired of her internal arguments, and dials.

It rings a few times, and then, "Hello?"

"Hey Asuna," Konoka answers, pacing outside of a store. "How are you?"

"Eh, the same. You?"

"Not so good," she admits, wanting to get straight to the point. "I actually wanted to talk to you about something."

After a brief pause, Asuna responds, "Is it about Setsuna?"

"Yeah. Can you meet me at," she looks around and spies a nearby restaurant, "Uh, actually, I can't read that sign."

Asuna's laugh comes loud and clear through the receiver. "Describe it to me then."

"Okay; it's small, like the size of a Starbucks, and it's got an outdoor patio with red metal chairs."

"Hmm. Alright," she declares, "I've narrowed it down to one of twenty places."

Konoka can only hope that's a joke. "It's next to the hospital, like half a mile from my hotel," she tries again, and this time Asuna's response is genuine.

"Ohh, I was there this morning with Setsuna. I'll see you in fifteen."

They both hang up and Konoka grabs a table. The waiter hands her a menu and she flips through it, and her blended coffee drink arrives just as Asuna does. Which should be a good thing, except that Konoka isn't really sure how to broach this subject.

"What did you wanna talk about?" Asuna asks after sitting down. She snags Konoka's drink and takes a sip.

Asking straight out if she thinks Setsuna is a psycho might be not be a good approach, so Konoka goes for the more tactful method. "Do you think something is wrong with Setsuna? Like, mentally?"

Addendum: _slightly_ more tactful method.

Asuna stares at her blankly for a moment. "Um, yes? She does seem like she got dropped on her head too many times or something. Why do you ask?"

"It's just," Konoka sighs, taking a second to recover her stolen drink. "There was some stuff that happened, and then I read a newspaper, and it all makes a lot of sense, so I think she might be lying to me about some things."

"That," Asuna declares, pointing a finger at Konoka, "Made absolutely no sense. Try again."

Konoka sighs again, but reluctantly explains. "A week or so ago she came into our hotel room at like four in the morning, and she – it was like –" Konoka growls, fumbling for words. "It was like she _sprinted_ in. She fell and rolled so hard she skewed the dresser, and she was holding this torn up sweater and was all dirty and bloody and looked like she got punched in the face."

"That doesn't sound so unusual for her," Asuna laughs lightly, "But go on."

"Right, well, she came up with this excuse about taking a walk and falling, but it sounded really made-up. For one thing I didn't even hear the door open, but, then again, we're on the third floor so she couldn't have gotten in any other way, I guess…"

Asuna looks slightly uneasy now. "Was your window open, by any chance?"

Konoka raises an eyebrow. "Yes. Why?"

"Just wondering."

The brunette shrugs it off and continues. "The other thing is that she dropped this little pendant that looks like a crow, and later I was reading a newspaper and apparently someone robbed a museum and the artifact that was stolen looked _exactly_ like it."

"Did the newspaper say what it was?"

Again not seeing the relevance, Konoka gives her a skeptical look. "It was badly translated, but they kept talking about something called Yatagarasu."

Asuna looks even more perturbed than before, but Konoka barrels forward regardless.

"She also had a map of the museum open on her computer, and there was a murder that night too, and she _did_ look like she'd gotten into one hell of a fight."

"That's weird," Asuna offers, trying to be nonchalant. "So you think she stole it?"

"I… don't know," Konoka admits, suddenly looking embarrassed. "I know it sounds crazy, but all the pieces fit together so well."

Asuna leans in her chair, tipping it on its back legs. "It does, I guess, but it's kind of unrealistic. It's just as likely that her story was true. I mean, she may be a good fighter, but Setsuna _is_ pretty clumsy; she really might've just tripped. Unless there's something else?"

Konoka briefly considers telling the redhead that she'd seen her and Setsuna walking home last night, but decides against it. Whatever they were doing was, as far as she can deduce, completely separate. _I mean, what are the chances that they're partners in crime or something?_ Konoka scoffs at the thought. Setsuna makes sense because the pieces fit, and because she certainly has the personality to murder someone in cold blood – _not that she did, of course_ – but Asuna? Asuna is a well-adjusted individual with a job, and social skills, and friends that she very obviously cares about. _The idea of her participating in a crime is ridiculous_, Konoka affirms. _They were probably just sparring or something_.

"No, not really," she says finally.

That explanation makes clear sense to her, so there's no reason to bring it up. Besides, that would mean admitting she went out and followed Setsuna like an obsessive stalker last night. She lets her attention drift in the ensuing silence, perfectly willing to let it drop.

Until she catches the conversation next to her, anyway.

There are two men sitting a table away from her, both dressed in scrubs and listlessly picking through their lunches. Their mood is clearly somber, and though she hadn't heard them before, with Asuna now busying herself with a menu, their voices are clearly audible now.

And she doesn't like what she hears.

"I still can't believe it," one of them says quietly.

"Me either," the other man sighs heavily, putting down his fork. "It's just so _weird_. It's not like her to get caught up in trouble. I just don't understand how this could've happened."

"I know, I mean, murdered in cold blood… The hospital is really going to miss her. She was so damn _nice_ to everyone."

The other man hums in agreement. "Yeah. Rokuko was a good girl…"

Whatever else they say is blocked out by the white noise in Konoka's ears.

The words bounce around in her head: _"Murdered in cold blood… Rokuko was a good girl…"_ And her brain forms a picture against her will: Setsuna going into her house at night, things somehow turn violent, Asuna shows up, the two of them standing over Rokuko's dead body –

_No way_, Konoka shakes her head rapidly to dispel the images. _There's no way_.

But hadn't Setsuna said that Rokuko worked at a hospital? Those two men are wearing scrubs, and how many people could possibly have that name and be from this area and go to this _same_ café?

Konoka glances up at Asuna, but the other girl doesn't seem to have heard.

_What the hell what the hell what the ever living _hell_ did I get myself into?_

"Hey, Konoka? You alright?" Asuna waves a hand in her face, and Konoka nearly jumps out of her skin.

"Yep, just fine," she says hurriedly, grabbing her wallet and throwing some cash down. "I just remembered I have a – a thing, so I have to go."

Konoka gets up and walks away, ignoring the concerned call from Asuna. Thankfully the redhead decides not to follow, and Konoka's first thought is to get as far away as possible.

Except with Setsuna back in the hotel, there aren't very many places to go, and she can't very well spend the rest of her trip avoiding both her and Asuna. The trip she'd just offered to extend.

With all the thoughts whirling in her mind, she knows that the safest option would be to get back home to the US, and to her father, and to sanity in general. That also means, however, having to go to the hotel and pack, and also thinking of an excuse to make to Setsuna. If her suspicions are correct – and things are certainly adding up that way – then the last thing she wants to do is potentially set off her psychotic friend into a killing frenzy or something.

Not having another choice, she makes an abrupt turn and heads towards the hotel on shaky legs.

**XXX**

Setsuna had been sitting on the bed, tossing the compact up and down and being generally disgruntled.

Evangeline hadn't answered, unfortunately, which upset her for a couple of reasons. The first is that she won't be able to get any answers until the blonde decides to pick up, and the second is that, thus far, Evangeline has never failed to respond. It wouldn't be highly unusual for her to be too busy – she always seemed to be running around and taking care of various things she didn't deign to inform Setsuna about. She _is _the personal guard of Lord Animus, so that theory makes a good deal of sense. But still, it doesn't make her any less worried, especially in light of recent events.

So when Konoka comes in and immediately begins packing her clothes in a whirl of activity and generally ignores Setsuna's questions, it puts her in an even worse mood.

"Konoka, would you just tell me what's going on?" She asks irritably for the fifth time.

"I told you already," the brunette replies in an equally aggressive tone, "There was a work emergency back home. We have to leave."

"_What_ emergency?"

"Just – an emergency."

Setsuna sighs through her teeth. Leaving Japan sounds like a horrible idea at this point. Whatever is going on has only started since they'd gotten here, and leaving now would mean leaving without any answers. While she hadn't cared to know much about it before, the frequency of life-threatening situations has gotten out of hand, and anything she can gather now could save her life – and her mission – in the future.

"Konoka, would you just stop packing for one minute and tell me what's actually happening? I thought you wanted to stay _longer_, not leave right away."

"Well, I changed my mind," she responds rather petulantly, throwing another pile of unfolded clothes into her suitcase.

"But _why_?"

"Am I not allowed to do that or something?"

Setsuna hops off the bed, the stress of the last couple of weeks having taken its toll, and grabs Konoka by the shoulder to turn her around.

"I thought it was rude to answer a question with a question," she states flatly. "Would you _please_ just explain to me _why_ you want to leave so –"

She stops abruptly at the look on Konoka's face. The brunette is leaning away from her, one hand fisted in a shirt, and her eyes are wide with unmistakable fear.

Setsuna promptly drops her hand and backs away.

"What's wrong?" She asks, taking another step back. Konoka doesn't answer, and guilt immediately sends her into apology mode. "I'm sorry if I scared you. I didn't mean to. I just don't understand why you're acting this way."

The fear quickly subsides to anger, and Konoka points an accusing finger at her. "_You_ are the one that's acting weird," she declares, although she doesn't look very sure of herself.

Setsuna thinks about that for a moment, trying to understand. "Is this about Rokuko? Asuna said that you were upset about it, so if you're worried about me seeing her again or something, I don't plan on it –"

"Of course you don't!" Konoka shouts, throwing her hands up. She hadn't planned on a confrontation, but the tension and Setsuna's unwillingness to leave without an explanation is quickly building to one. Taking a breath to ready herself, she narrows her eyes and says with all the confidence she can muster, "I know she's dead."

Setsuna hadn't been expecting _that_. _How could she know that? Is she bluffing?_ She thinks back over her the past two weeks, trying to put the trail together. Was it possible that Konoka simply came to the conclusion on her own? There were certainly enough clues, if you counted the fact that she couldn't dispose of the bodies… Setsuna feels cold realization hit her in the chest. She'd been distracted earlier, but thinking about it, that explains why Konoka had been so awkward around her this morning. The girl had probably gone out just to avoid her, and then been pacing and mulling it over and putting the facts together in the meantime.

Setsuna swallows her fear and replies as nonchalantly as she can, which isn't nonchalantly at all, "Why do you think that?"

Konoka crosses her arms over herself protectively, but she clings to her self-righteousness and pushes onward. "I overheard a conversation that she'd been killed last night. _Murdered_, in fact, and I saw you and Asuna walking home late yesterday–"

"You saw us?"

"So I followed you! Big deal," Konoka scoffs, preemptively defensive and trying to downplay it. "The point is that it seems awfully suspicious considering _you_ were probably the last one to see her. And – and what about that crow thing?" She notes the look of recognition on Setsuna's face, and encouraged, continues. "You came home that night all bloody, and the museum got robbed of that _same_ thing, and – and somebody was killed that night too! How can you explain that?"

She can't, really. Setsuna fumbles for some kind of story, but it'd be difficult to explain away all the details. She averts her eyes to the floor. _This is bad_. No part of her plan had included Konoka finding out about any of that, and now with all of it up in the air, and her unable to find any convincing way to blame it on coincidence, she's now left without much of a plan.

_Now would probably be the point to kill her_, she realizes, but the thought makes her feel heavy. Even if she _did_ do that, there's no guarantee that they'd be close enough for her to manipulate her soul, considering what Konoka is feeling for her right now. The brunette is obviously scared – if her earlier reaction didn't prove it, her hands shaking certainly does – and for some reason that makes Setsuna feel very, very ashamed. She hesitantly looks up.

"I know this seems bad," she starts, and Konoka's jaw drops at the functional admission of guilt. "But there are reasons for – those things. I didn't do it because I wanted to."

Konoka stares at her incredulously. "Then why the hell _would_ you do it?!"

"I… can't say," she says lamely, "But you have to believe me –"

"_Believe_ you? You've been lying to me this entire time! You – you robbed a museum, killed a bystander, and then _murdered_ your date! Do you know what you sound like right now?" Konoka is near the point of hyperventilating, and she runs a hand through her hair, trying to calm herself down. "I can't believe this is happening."

"It's not what it sounds like!" Setsuna takes a step forward, but Konoka recoils and Setsuna thinks better of it. She reaches out a hand pleadingly, trying to calm the frightened woman in front of her. "I know it looks really bad, but I promise I had a reason."

"So you've said," Konoka responds unsympathetically. She shifts from foot to foot, eyeing the door, and Setsuna knows this is probably going to get worse before it gets better.

She takes a step forward again and slowly places a hand on Konoka's, trying not to startle her. The brunette doesn't back away, although she looks obviously uncomfortable.

Which makes Setsuna feel like absolute shit, to put it lightly.

She wishes she could say "I can't believe she's scared of me," but in reality, it makes perfect sense. To Konoka it must look like she's absolutely psychotic, and never in her life has Setsuna wanted someone to think better of her more than she does right now.

But she can't figure out how to make that happen. She struggles to find something to say, but Konoka is inching towards the door already and she's quickly running out of time.

"Can't we talk about this?" Setsuna finally says, although that's now what she wants to say at all.

Konoka nearly laughs at the question. "We just did."

She looks at Setsuna, who is clearly having an internal battle of some sort, but Konoka isn't patient enough to wait around for the outcome. "Look. I checked the flight schedule on my way home. All the planes are delayed until tonight; there's a storm back home. I'm coming back to get my stuff in a couple of hours, and then I'm going to leave."

"You're not going to call the police?" Setsuna asks, both relieved and surprised.

That had crossed Konoka's mind, true, and that would be the logical choice of action. Setsuna's killed innocent people, after all, but at the same time, this is the same girl she would've called her best friend only a few hours earlier. Despite what good judgment might dictate, she can't bring herself to do it.

Which brings her to wonder about her _own_ sanity, because most sane people's feelings for another person would probably be squashed by this kind of thing.

In fact, most people probably wouldn't have come back to this room in the first place, especially knowing their plane wasn't leaving for six hours. Yet, Konoka had. She wanted to come in here and have Setsuna tell her the truth, and she'd wanted that truth to be a confirmation of innocence, a story explaining that Setsuna hadn't killed anyone and that it was all just a super strange coincidence. As it stands, she hadn't gotten either of the things she'd hoped for.

_Stupid heart_, Konoka thinks, but says out loud, "No, I'm not. You can use the company account to get back home. But I don't want to see you at work anymore," she adds quickly, and then after some thought, "And Setsuna?"

"Yes?"

Konoka swallows her feelings and refuses to hesitate. "Don't be here when I come back."

Without another word, she turns and leaves.

**XXX**

Setsuna watches the door close behind Konoka and stares at it, her mind blank. She remains there, unmoving and listening to the steady hum of the air conditioner, until her legs start to fall asleep from the rigid posture of her body.

"She left," she says to no one, and then sits down on the bed. _I can't believe it_. Except that she can, because _anyone_ would leave after being told their roommate is a serial killer.

Somehow she winds up staring at the ceiling unblinkingly, and her throat feels tight, just like it had last night when she'd been looking down at Rokuko's lifeless body. This isn't how things were supposed to go; _everything_ hinges on Konoka. Her mission, the entirety of Hell, _and me_, she realizes belatedly. It hadn't occurred to her before, but now faced with the threat of losing their friendship, being a hero and living on Earth permanently suddenly seems empty without Konoka in the picture.

But that had always been impossible, she knows. After she kills Konoka, she'll be alone again. Asuna will leave her – probably try and kill her, too, she realizes. The only person that will still be around is Evangeline, and while that provides some measure of comfort, it doesn't seem to do much for the ache in her chest.

She lies there for an hour, so still that she realizes she hadn't even really been breathing.

She speaks again to the empty room. "I need help."

She can't talk to Asuna about this, or Ayaka, and she tries Evangeline again, but only sees her own distraught reflection in the mirror.

_There's no one_.

Memories of the days between Evangeline's visits are few and far between; when she hadn't been tortured or forced to fight, that time blurred together with nothing to think about and no one to talk to. The loneliness and boredom were crushing, and the pang in her chest seizes her breath once again. She clenches her fists in the bed sheets and tries to inhale. Not that she knows why anymore. Living had always seemed like a chore, but now especially, it seems like nothing but torture.

Her mind races for an answer; _anything_ to fix this. She pulls out her pactio cards and stares her apathetic images on each paper.

_I could talk to Mana_, she realizes, but then, she isn't sure she's in the mood to get yelled at. Mana is hardly sympathetic to her problems, and could care less about anything except getting paid. She'd made that abundantly clear in their time together, and despite the fact that Mana's alive and on Earth, Setsuna has to wonder if the woman has a heart at all.

But there's Mana or there's no one, and faced with that choice, the answer is clear. The other demon may lack compassion, but she _is_ intelligent, and certainly more so about problem solving and people skills than Setsuna.

Reluctantly, she puts the card to her forehead.

_Hello?_

No answer.

Setsuna grits her teeth, her frustration intensifying. For Evangeline not to pick up is one thing, but for Mana to leave her alone as well… _It's her job to watch over me, damnit_, she thinks, even though she knows perfectly well that Mana has her own life and her own things to attend to. It doesn't make her any less angry though. She tries again.

_Are you there?_

Still no answer, but this time there's a buzzing in her brain, like the static she'd encountered with Asuna last night, except quieter.

Squeezing her eyes shut and concentrating as hard as she possibly can, Setsuna tries one more time.

_Mana, can you hear me?_

She waits, and at first there's nothing, but then the buzzing noise grows louder and clearer. Setsuna can hear voices now – unfamiliar ones, talking in a language she can't understand.

_Hey!_ She mentally calls out through the static, but the voices only get louder.

The volume is almost too much for her to bear, but she clenches her jaw and keeps the card pressed to her forehead until it seems like the whole room is vibrating with the noise.

She gasps, pain wracking her body.

And then there's nothing but darkness.

**XXX**

Setsuna doesn't want to open her eyes; she feels like she had that night she'd had far too much to drink, and her headache is like an MMA fighter trying to rip his way out of her skull.

To make matter worse, the voices are still there, and she squeezes her eyes shut and tries to will away the rhythmic booming in her head. But the voices don't disappear. Neither does the booming, which she's beginning to realize isn't just because of the pain underneath her temples.

_What the hell is that?_

Finally opening her eyes, she finds herself staring not at the ceiling of her hotel room, but at the cloudy gray sky.

Her brain tries to process that information, and she lies there, in what feels like dirt, until drizzle begins to fall. The cold rain clears her thoughts somewhat, and she sits up.

And then almost flops back down again in disbelief.

She's not sure where she is. There are people all around shouting at each other in a language that isn't English, but somehow the words translate in her brain. A man jumps over her legs and sprints in another direction as fast as possible, which isn't very fast at all because he's carrying a limp body over one shoulder.

The booming noise, she realizes, is the sound of gunfire.

Wherever she is, she certainly doesn't want to die here. She gets to her feet despite her protesting muscles, which is strange in itself because she wasn't sore when she woke up this morning.

"What the hell is going on?" Setsuna asks out loud this time, adjusting the gun around her shoulder – _wait. A gun?_

There's a sigh of relief from behind her, and she turns around to face the person, ready to attack just in case.

"You're alive," he says, clapping a hand on her arm in a friendly gesture. His eyes are warm and kind, and he's looking at her in a clearly familiar way. _More _than just familiar, if Setsuna had to guess.

"I am," she agrees, and the man grins at her.

"You scared the shit outta me."

Setsuna looks around again, pulling at her shirt, which sticks to her uncomfortably in the humid, rainy weather. "What happened?"

"Grenade," he says simply, but explains further at her alarmed look. "You didn't get hit. The blast knocked you back though, and you passed out."

That isn't much of an explanation for Setsuna, who still has no idea where she is, or how she got here, but she nods anyway. The man smiles at her again, but it fades quickly.

"We have to get to the front. They're shooting us down like target practice." His serious expression softens, and he looks like he wants to say something, but struggles with the words. Releasing a breath, he finally gives her arm a gentle squeeze and says, almost too soft to hear, "I'm glad you're alright, Mana."

_Mana?_

Setsuna stares at him, confused beyond all belief now, but a quick glance at her hands solves that mystery. They're dark. Too dark to be hers. She reaches a hand up and finds her hair short and cropped, and the tightness in her chest that'd been plaguing her before now makes perfect sense – Setsuna puts a hand on her upper ribcage and realizes that it's bound tightly, effectively disguising her as a man.

But this is definitely Mana's body.

The man motions for her to follow, and though she doesn't consciously choose to do so, her legs carry her after him. Setsuna quickly realizes her actions aren't her own anymore, and her hands move of their own accord, slinging her gun off her shoulder and into her awaiting grip.

They huddle behind a barricade together. She watches herself peek over it and shoot down men with alarming accuracy.

"Get down!" Her friend (or so she assumes) yells at her, and she feels her body duck down beneath the barricade. He launches a grenade into the fray, and it explodes loudly, forcing Setsuna – or Mana, as the case might be – to cover her ears.

When the ringing in her head stops, she turns to the man beside her. He is staring at her pensively, his dark eyes shining with determination, and something else that Setsuna can't name.

Looking back at him, though, she can feel her own expression reflecting that look. There's a warmth in her body that isn't her own, and she knows it must be Mana's, though it's coupled with a tenderness that she hadn't expected the other woman to be capable of.

"Aman," she hears herself say. It sounds like there should be more words, but the tone of her voice and the name alone seems to speak volumes.

He smiles at her, opening his mouth to say something.

There is a blast then, one far closer than the grenade he'd thrown. She feels herself being flung backwards, her head banging roughly against the packed dirt of the ground.

This time she shouts his name, and her voice is panicked and raspy. "Aman!"

She coughs a few times, something weighing heavily on her stomach. With no small amount of pain she lifts her head, blinking away the black spots. A few of the sandbags, previously part of the now destroyed barricade, are lying on her lower torso. She struggles to shove them off her, looking around wildly.

She shouts his name again, finally managing to get one weight off and working on the next. She pauses briefly to glance around once more, and almost immediately, she spots two things of concern.

The first is a man, light-skinned and blue-eyed, pointing a gun at her.

The second is Aman.

He shouts, charging the other man with his gun out. The soldier hears his cry and turns his attention to Aman, rifle pointed.

A surge of emotion rushes through Setsuna's veins, and she feels it all acutely – panic, fear so strong it makes the world seem like it's moving in slow motion, and finally desperation, as she tries frantically to stand up.

There are two bangs.

The soldier falls first, a well-aimed bullet in the side of his face.

She throws the sandbag off her with a grunt, her arms shaking from the effort, and then she's sprinting, the world passing her by in a blur of sound and color.

Aman is on the ground, gasping for breath, blood gushing from the wound in his chest.

He says something to her that she doesn't hear. The air around her is buzzing like white noise, and she watches from what feels like a great distance as his head tilts slightly to the side, mouth falling open, body limp in death.

Setsuna can see it all clearly; she's watching from a distance now as Mana beats on his chest, but for some reason the emotions don't leave, and she notices for the first time how small the girl is. She can't be older than fifteen.

There's a loud scream, loud enough to pierce through the thick air and the heavy gunfire, and Setsuna reaches a hand to her mouth and realizes that it's coming from her.

She can feel the tears on her face, and the first of many sobs ripping its way out of her throat even while men fall around her, the battle obviously lost.

Her vision darkens but the pain stays. Setsuna can feel her knees bruise as she hits the ground, and she tears the hand away from her face to make way for the nausea.

_This_, she realizes, _is what Evangeline was talking about_.

The coldness and anger and heartbreak welling up inside her hold nothing in comparison – even the memory of her own tortures seem far away under the weight of her – of Mana's – emotion.

_Stop, stop, please stop_, her mind replays it over and over again, but she's still there, spitting into the dirt and wanting nothing more than for everything to end.

And maybe that's why, as she finally looks up and sees the barrel of a gun pointed down at her, once again in Mana's body, there is something like relief flowing through her.

"Kill me," she says, although the man doesn't speak her language.

He puts his finger on the trigger.

Setsuna looks again at the corpse in front of her, his eyes still open, and knows that Evangeline was definitely right.

He pulls the trigger.

"_Some things really do hurt more than getting your eyes torched…"_

**XXX**

Setsuna's body hits the bedroom floor with a loud thump.

She gets to her knees, gasping for breath, tears still streaking down her face. Never in her life has she been so glad to wake up, and she nearly kisses the floor with gratitude. Her heart is beating rapidly in her chest, and she tries in vain to calm down.

_What the hell was that?_

Almost as if hearing her, Mana's voice responds in her head.

_**My dream. **_Her voice is calm, but it's obvious that she's pissed off. _**What the hell did you think you were doing?**_

Setsuna fumbles for the pactio card on the mattress, but realizes that it's stuck to her sweaty forehead.

_I have no idea,_ she responds, and even her thoughts sound jumbled and broken. _I was just trying to talk to you_.

_**Don't try so damn hard next time.**_

_I'm sorry_.

Her inflection is more emotional than she'd intended. She's sorry for invading Mana's dreams, for invading her privacy, but it's clear from her voice that she's sorry for much more than that. Wiping the last tears off her face, she gathers her courage.

_Mana?_

_**What?**_

_What happened?_

_**My life**_, Mana responds simply, her tone changing to one of slight amusement.

_Were you human?_

_**Not quite.**_

Setsuna drags herself off the floor, but finds she doesn't have much strength to do anything else.

_A half-demon, then, but born on Earth. _She cringes. That explains why Mana went to Hell after she'd died, and there's no telling where Aman had gone. Reborn on Earth, or dragged to Heaven, but either way, they more than likely hadn't seen each other again.

_**Yes. **_She doesn't say it, but Setsuna can practically hear the word "unfortunately" come after.

She can't blame her, either. Setsuna doubts Mana's life would've been better in Hell, but then again, what she'd just experienced through Mana was something else entirely. At least physical pain ends when your body breaks and you finally die, but _that_ kind of hurt… Setsuna can imagine quite easily now how it would stay with you, no matter how many new lives you had.

Watching Aman die, it seemed like the entire world had ended, as if the sky were falling on her head. It was brutal; it was agonizing; it was like nothing she'd felt before and nothing Setsuna would ever, _ever _want to feel again.

She thinks of Konoka walking away, of watching Konoka die like that, and the lump in her throat returns.

It's been silent for a while, and Setsuna wonders if the other woman has left. She takes her chances anyway.

_Can I ask you something?_

_**You have been for the past five minutes.**_

Setsuna takes that for a yes. _Did you love him?_

_**You were me. I think that should be obvious.**_

Another yes, then. She hesitates with her next question, almost not wanting to ask for fear of the repercussions.

_Do you think_… she pauses, knowing this is a bad idea, but a part of her needs to know. _Do you think you could have killed him? If you had to._

She hadn't related the question to herself and Konoka, exactly, but it's pretty clear what she's actually asking. Setsuna holds her breath and waits, expecting yelling, or insults, or for Mana to spontaneously appear and punch her in the face. Probably all three.

But to her surprise, Mana's voice is calm and measured.

_**No. I wouldn't have. **_Though she's as apathetic as always, something about her tone is reassuring – almost permissive.

_I see._

They both pause, and then:

_**I'll have to fight you.**_

Setsuna smiles at that. _I know_.

_**Evangeline will too.**_

_I know_, she says again.

_**Suit yourself**_.

_I'm sorry_, Setsuna says abruptly. Though she knows it probably won't mean much, she continues anyway. _I hope your life is better now._

A pause. _**They say time heals all wounds**_.

_Does it?_

Mana actually laughs at that. _**Not even a little.**_

There's a mental jerk, and Setsuna knows the connection has ended.

Mana's last words stay with her though, bouncing around in her brain.

It's going to be difficult – impossible, probably. No one Setsuna has ever met is stronger than Evangeline; the angels she fought so far would be nothing but live fodder for her.

And moreover, she's not sure she _would_ fight Evangeline, let alone could.

_There's no way for everyone to win._

But she thinks about Rokuko's dead body in the grass, and Aman's still open eyes, the emotions resurging, and knows that she'll have to find one.

**XXX**

Konoka has spent the last three hours walking slowly through the city, avoiding people, and jumping at the slightest of noises. Her paranoia alone has left her tired and ready to pull out her hair, but the urge is compounded by the fact that she's also been arguing with herself the entire time.

She doesn't know if she's making the right decision. She doesn't know if there _is_ a right decision, and despite herself, worried thoughts of Setsuna sitting alone and upset in the hotel room have been sneaking their way into her consciousness the entire time.

_Maybe I shouldn't have told her to leave_, she thinks, biting her nail nervously and pacing outside the hotel. People shoot her strange looks as they pass by, but she doesn't notice.

_No, she's psychotic. You shouldn't spend any more time with her than necessary._

Except that she _wants_ to. Which is crazy in itself, but the considerate, protective – albeit weird – Setsuna she's spent so much time with over the past few weeks simply could _not_ be a serial killer.

_But she is._

Konoka pauses abruptly, causing several people to almost walk straight into her. Again, she doesn't notice.

_Maybe I should've let her explain_.

What excuse is there for murder, though? Even if Rokuko _had_ been a little off her rocker, that was hardly deserving of death.

_Maybe Rokuko started it. And maybe that guy at the museum did too_._ No, wait, that doesn't make any sense._ She resumes pacing. _Okay, then maybe she's being blackmailed by a drug syndicate that forced her to steal from the museum so they could sell the artifact, and maybe the guy she killed was undercover and if she _hadn't_ killed him then the drug lord was going to –_

She stops herself and sighs heavily. She's grasping at straws, she knows, but she really, really doesn't want Setsuna to be crazy.

_I _liked_ her, damnit! Why did she have to go and –_

_How did I get to my room?_

Somehow she'd made it all the way up three flights of stairs without realizing it.

Her thumbnail is officially bitten down, so she drops her hands to her side and grinds her teeth instead. She stands outside for a few more minutes and then, resigned, Konoka puts her ear to the door before entering. She doesn't hear anything, so she cracks it open just enough to squeeze through the space, and gently closes the door behind her.

She can't quite work up the courage to walk into the bedroom though.

"Hello?" She calls out experimentally, and isn't sure whether to be relieved or disappointed by the lack of answer.

Then she nearly jumps out of her skin at the _thump_ from the bedroom. Slowly, she sidles around the corner.

Setsuna is on the bed, holding the leg that she'd rammed into the nightstand at the sound of Konoka's voice. Her hair and clothes are mussed, and her eyes dart back and forth between Konoka and the floor. She'd obviously spent the last couple of hours doing exactly what Konoka had been doing; working herself up into a disheveled, confused mess.

"Hi!" Setsuna blurts out, voice a bit too loud, and she blushes at her own volume. "Uh, I – I know you said I should leave, but, I, uh, didn't want to?" Her sentence ends with an upward inflection, almost like she's asking permission.

Again, Konoka isn't sure how to feel about this development.

"Right. Well." Konoka clears her throat and tries to put words together in a coherent sentence. "I just, you know, came back to get my stuff."

She walks stiffly over to her bed and grabs her suitcase. Setsuna jumps up, alarmed, and Konoka flinches at the sudden movement.

"You should stay," Setsuna says in a rush, looking panicky and, frankly, kind of unstable. "I mean, you don't _have_ to stay, and I know you don't want to, but you _should_ stay."

Konoka narrows her eyes, trying to decipher the meaning behind that assertion, but they're both paranoid and unsure, and she comes to all the wrong conclusions. "Is that a threat?"

"No!" Setsuna's eyes go wide in panic, and she holds up both hands as if she's surrendering. "No, not at all, I wouldn't – I wouldn't _threaten_ you into hanging out with me. I just… wouldn't like it very much if you left."

Konoka doesn't look reassured by that at all, and Setsuna nearly slaps herself for her choice of words.

_What happened to finding a way?!_ She criticizes herself, which only brings her closer to hyperventilating than she was before, but this is all just so, so, _so_ messed up.

Her chest feels tight and she tries to take deep breaths to calm herself down, but all she can think about is how she'd been forced to kill Rokuko, and how Asuna will hate her, and how she'll have to fight Evangeline, and then there's Aman – and she can't get that _damn_ image out of her head, of him lying there and staring at nothing, his body growing cold and stiff and Mana, only fifteen-years-old, banging on his chest and asking only to die.

Konoka watches warily as Setsuna puts one hand against the wall to steady herself. Setsuna's not used to this, to emotion, to caring about death, and her heart feels like it's about to come out of her mouth.

She'd spent the past two hours thinking about nothing but that feeling, how everything in the world suddenly lost its meaning in the face of that heartbreak, how fucking _devastating_ it was, and no wonder Shiro was so damn crazy.

"_Some things really do hurt more than –"_

"_Fuck!_" Setsuna curses, slamming her fist into the wall. It does nothing but startle Konoka into taking a step back, and it's like that dream had unleashed something awful in her, because she can feel frustrated tears making her eyes wet.

Desperate to salvage anything that's left, she tries to speak, and her voice comes quiet and rough. "You think I'm crazy," she says, and Konoka gives her a _well, duh_, look. She glances away momentarily, but when she looks back again her voice and expression are firm, urging Konoka to understand. "But I would never, _ever_ hurt you."

"How can you expect me to believe that?" Konoka's voice is similarly quiet. She _wants_ to believe Setsuna, but that seems impossible now. "You killed people, Setsuna, and you won't tell me why – and even if you did," she says, voice rising again, "I still don't know if I'd believe you. How can you prove you won't just kill _me_, too?"

"I…" Setsuna trails off, at a loss for words. _Everything_ rests on Konoka's death, and it'd been her plan to kill her all along. How could she possibly look her in the eye and say that she won't? Even if she doesn't _want_ to, and even if she fights against it, the fact is, she may _have_ to. And moreover, how can she possibly _prove_ that she won't?

The silence lasts a moment too long, and Konoka turns away, heading for the door. Setsuna's hand juts out, grabbing her by the wrist and turning her around frantically.

Konoka's about to snatch her arm away and tell her off, but she stops short.

_I got to see her laugh for the first time yesterday, and now I get to see her cry_, she thinks cynically. It shouldn't stop her from leaving, but her feet feel rooted to the floor.

"Please don't leave," Setsuna hiccups, wiping at the unfamiliar tears and completely giving up on rational thought. "I'll do anything, I swear I'll never hurt you, and I won't kill anyone _ever _again, I promise, and I'll tell you everything you want to know – please, just – don't go."

She wants to say so much more, but her throat is officially jammed now. Setsuna squeezes her eyes shut and thinks the words instead; _I don't know what I'll do if you leave; I can't do this – anything_ _– without you; I don't want to be alone again –_

And even though she'd thought just the other day that she'd been satisfied with friendship, that her attraction was nothing more than physical, whatever emotions are exploding behind her eyes now don't seem to match up, but frantic and choked up and inexperienced, she can't find the words for them.

She hadn't recognized it before, whatever it is, and maybe it's the stress and the fighting for her life, or maybe it's the fact that Rokuko and Aman dying in front of her had hit something in her she hadn't known was there. Or maybe it's looking at Konoka, the one person in her life that had treated her with nothing but kindness and compassion, now scared of her and about to leave.

But the feelings are there and intense and she has absolutely no idea what to do with them.

Konoka watches the internal battle in front of her, not sure what to think, but knowing all the same that she should leave. Even if Setsuna really is sorry, and even if her promises are real, it doesn't excuse the fact that she'd been committing crimes behind her back.

"I'm sorry," she says quietly, trying to ignore the crestfallen look on Setsuna's face.

Gently, she extracts her arm from Setsuna's grip and turns away quickly, not giving herself time to regret anything.

Her hand is on the doorknob and she takes a shaky breath, mentally cementing her decision, but once again, Setsuna grabs her, and this time when she whips Konoka around it's with more force than she'd intended, and she puts one hand on Konoka's shoulder to keep her pinned to the door.

The brunette manages to catch Setsuna's determined expression just before the force sends her head backwards into the door with a loud _bang_, black spots distorting her vision, and her first reaction is to struggle. Konoka lashes out, attempting to free herself, but Setsuna is significantly stronger and grabs both her wrists in one hand, pressing them back against the door and pushing their bodies together to still the other girl.

Konoka blinks the stars away and attempts to headbutt her in the forehead. Setsuna grunts at the pain but responds with the same amount of force, and blood – Konoka's, Setsuna's, neither is sure – drips down from the point of impact and trails down their faces.

Konoka can feel her heart about to pound out of her chest, and she opens her mouth to scream, the sound barely making its way out of her mouth before Setsuna, frenzied and desperate, shoves their lips together in a last ditch effort to make her stop.

The sound dies in Konoka's throat and her whole body tenses. It feels very, very right and simultaneously very, very wrong, with her back pressed so hard against the door it's hard to breathe and the taste of blood in her mouth.

She pulls away gasping, heart still hammering in her chest, but they're suddenly kissing again and she's not so sure that Setsuna initiated it this time.

Konoka reflexively tries to put her hands around the other girl, but Setsuna, still terrified to let her go, tightens her grip.

When they pull away this time they pause, neither sure what to say.

Setsuna licks the blood off her lips and tries to speak, "I –"

Unfortunately, whatever she'd been about to say is cut off by a knock on the door.

Both girls jump at the sound, and Setsuna finally lets go of Konoka's wrists. She hastily wipes the blood off her face, which does nothing but smear it around, and the two glance at each other guiltily.

There's another knock, and this time Setsuna answers it.

"Yes?" She asks calmly.

There's a man standing there, staring at her with wide eyes and looking appropriately worried.

"Are you okay?" He asks quickly, taking a step back. "There was a lot of banging, and I thought I heard someone shout…" He trails off and tries to peak around the door, only to have Konoka burst out from behind it and take off at a near sprint down the hallway.

Setsuna tries to catch her arm but doesn't quite make it. "Shit," she mumbles, and runs after her, throwing the door closed behind her.

"Konoka, _wait_!"

She dashes down the hallway in pursuit, leaving the man standing in their doorway.

**XXX**

Konoka's not sure where she's going, just that she wants to get very, very far away.

She wants to ask herself what the hell is going on, but she's already done that a million times today, so she forgoes the formality. Instead she runs blindly out of the hotel, shoving past a few people, and turns in a random direction down the street.

_I guess I got what I wanted, _she laughs humorlessly, shaking her head at the thought. While somewhat true, these are hardly the conditions she'd wanted Setsuna to kiss her in, right after she'd found out the girl was a murderer and probably crazy.

Except she really, really hadn't _seemed_ crazy. Despite being obviously panicked, her promises, while hard to believe, sounded sincere, and despite herself and all the evidence stacked up against Setsuna, Konoka still can't honestly fathom being murdered by her. Or hurt at all, for that matter, perhaps excusing the hold Setsuna had kept her in not two minutes prior.

Shaking her head at the thoughts, she looks up to get her bearings, but her surroundings are completely unfamiliar.

"Great," she mumbles to herself. "Getting lost is exactly what I needed."

Konoka checks the street sign next to her, and recognizing the name, realizes she's fairly close to where she'd been having lunch with Asuna. Not wanting to head back there and risk running into the redhead, she opts for going in the opposite direction.

_As long as I stay close by, I should be able to find my way back_. She walks slowly down the street, staring into darkened windows and trying not to think about Setsuna back in the hotel room. She forces her thoughts elsewhere, and her father's words pop back into her mind. Biting her lip, Konoka realizes that he'd been right, in a sense. _How is it that parents always know everything?_ Eishun always seemed to be a step ahead of her. She can recall once or twice when she'd attempted to sneak out of the house, and she'd opened the front door as quietly as possible only to find him standing there, arms crossed and a frown on his face.

_Then_ she'd tried to sneak out the window and ended up nearly breaking her ankle. That'd forced _her_ to seek _him_ out, and resulted in a rather embarrassing conversation, numerous apologies, and a grounding.

The memory makes her feel worse, and Konoka sighs at herself, wondering if she'd _ever_ had control over anything in her life. It seems to her that, thus far, few decisions had been her own, and the ones she had made always seemed to turn out badly: her choice in men, the people she'd trusted, even accepting her father's job offer. None of it had turned out like she'd planned, and none of it had made her happy. The only choice she can think of that she hadn't regretted in the least was reaching out to Setsuna.

But look how _that_ turned out.

Konoka stops abruptly in the street, feeling a headache coming on. She realizes she hasn't had anything to eat today and looks around for somewhere to stop.

Just her luck, however, all the windows in the shops are dark.

She searches the streets for someone to ask – maybe if she could find a pedestrian that speaks English, they could point her in the right direction – but just like the stores, the sidewalks are also empty.

Which is weird for more than one reason. It's still daylight, first of all, and can't be later than six in the evening. There's no reason why the city would be so empty. _But there's no one here_.

It seems highly improbable that everyone in the city decided to take a vacation at the same time, and she looks up at the high-rises, expecting to see people in the windows. Again, they're empty.

"What the hell?"

She takes a right and searches the street she'd turned down. It _looks_ like the city, sure, but cocking her head to the side and straining her ears, she hears something highly unusual. It's eerily quiet.

Konoka's heart rate picks up slightly, and she takes mental inventory. _Alright. So, the building lights are dark, and there are no people in the windows, and there are cars parked on the side of the street, but there's no one in them._

In fact, there's no one around at all.

Unease keeps her rooted to the ground. Nervously, she reaches for her phone, but curses when she realizes she must've left it in the hotel room.

_Of all the things to forget…_

Not having a choice, she starts walking again, looking around at the empty streets and trying in vain to figure out what's going on.

She needs to get back to the hotel, Setsuna or no Setsuna, and grab her phone. The ideal plan is to book it to the airport and take the first flight home, but when she turns around, the way she came looks just as unfamiliar as the way forward.

She turns a corner and glances around again. Still no one. She checks the street sign and realizes she'd somehow ended up going in a circle, which makes zero sense, because she'd only taken one turn.

_Am I dreaming? Did Setsuna knock me out or something?_

Her stomach turns nervously and she continues to walk, turning another corner, only to find herself looking down the same damn street.

"What the hell!" She says again, shouting this time if only to break the oppressive silence.

Now picking up the pace to a light jog, she takes a left this time, and then another left, and then another right –

And is one the same street.

"That doesn't make any sense…"

She squints into the distance, trying to spot any signs of life whatsoever, but there's absolutely no movement. It's like the entire world is frozen.

Grinding her teeth in irritation – because being angry is certainly easier than being scared – she does a full one-eighty and takes a step.

Right into another person.

Konoka stumbles back and starts to apologize, but finds herself having to look quite a ways down to meet the other person's eyes.

"Oh. Um, I'm sorry," she says unsurely, staring at the person in front of her.

He can't be older than twelve, but it's not his age that throws her off. He's watching her impassively, and he seems to exude an aura of complete apathy. That alone is unusual for a child, but the weirdness is compounded by the fact that he doesn't seem at all fazed by their strange surroundings or the blood on her face. Not to mention his stark white hair.

"Are you Konoka Konoe?" He asks simply, voice smooth and low for someone so young.

The already nerve-wracking situation has her on edge as it is, but the fact that this boy knows her name, despite his non-threatening height, makes her downright paranoid.

"Why?" She asks, taking a step back. Vivid memories of her would-be axe murderer surface, and she decides that maybe it's better that she doesn't answer that question outright.

But the boy seems unconcerned by her question, and he takes a step forward to match her movement.

"I'll take that as a yes."

His posture isn't aggressive, but he pulls a hand out of his pocket and something instinctual in Konoka is screaming loud and clear: _run_.

She turns on her heel and sprints.

Which doesn't do much good, because she takes a sharp turn around a building and finds herself staring at the same boy.

"No way," she mutters, the fear spreading through her limbs with a sharp adrenaline rush. She spins around again, but sure enough, wherever she is seems to just lead her in a circle – and right back to that strange boy.

"There's no use running."

"I can see that," Konoka snaps, panting and out of breath.

And damn it all, but she's even _more_ sorry that she left Setsuna behind now.

Museum thief and murderer she might be, but Setsuna was also the one that'd saved her life; she'd almost died doing it, too. Konoka bites her lip and squeezes her eyes shut, the stress and confusion of the past few hours hitting her full force, and while she'd had the sneaking suspicion before, the regret hits her fully now. _I made the wrong decision._

It's a bit late for that now, however, and she can only hold onto the hope that this is all a very, very bad dream. She opens her eyes and tries to put on a brave face.

"What do you want from me?"

He stares at her unblinkingly. "Your soul."

Konoka is about to ask what kind of metaphorical bullshit he's spouting, but the boy simply reaches out a hand, and the stop sign next to him bends and contorts with a very loud squealing noise.

She watches, entranced and horrified, as the signpost reshapes itself into a very big, very sharp looking metal spear.

She glances back and forth between the boy and the weapon, mouth-open in disbelief.

"You have to be kidding me."

He doesn't even shrug. "If you hold still, you're death will be painless."

"How tempting," she replies incredulously, too surprised to hold her tongue.

He reaches back, preparing to throw the giant-scary-metal-weapon-of-death at her, and she knows now is not the time for talking. Now is the time for leaving.

Konoka hadn't even known she could run this fast, and she nearly overshoots the turn she tries to make. It causes her to stumble onto her hands for a moment, and she hears the spear zoom just barely over her head and it slides, screeching down the pavement. She stares it for a moment, eyes wide.

It's not that she hadn't believed him, but having someone say they want to kill you and then having them actually _try_ are two totally separate things.

Lifting her head back up, she looks down the street she'd turned on. The boy is standing at the end of it. She peeks back around the corner she'd turned. He's standing at the end of _that_ street, too.

"That's not fair!" She shouts accusingly.

The boy says nothing, and he reaches his hand towards another street sign. Konoka looks around the building and sees the scene reflected again like looking at fun house mirrors, and knows there's no running this time.

"This is a dream," she whispers to herself, her voice shaking with fear. "This is a dream, and if I die, I'll wake up." It's the only logical rationalization she can think of, but the boy seems determined to strip her of that small comfort as well.

The metal twists and grinds as it's formed into another spear. "This _is_ an illusion," he says, cocking his arm back. "But you won't be waking up."

Konoka's heart leaps into her throat at that. She's never had a dream like this before – one so vivid, where she knows she's dreaming but can't remember how she fell asleep and incapable of snapping herself out of it. But if it's _not_ a dream, and it _is_ real, or something else entirely, that all points to one ending.

She's going to die. For real.

The boy hurls the spear at her and she stands rooted to the pavement, watching it in near slow motion as it comes straight at her. At the last moment she closes her eyes, hoping beyond hope that this isn't real, that her brain is playing tricks on her, that she _isn't_ about to be killed by some unexplainable force.

Still, her knees are shaking, and she can't do anything but wait for the inevitable, whether that means waking up and crying with relief, or not. She closes her eyes and waits.

But death doesn't come, and the walls of her bedroom don't appear either.

Instead there's the sound of metal on metal, a familiar voice shouting at her – "Don't move!" – the feel of an unnaturally strong gust of wind, and her feet being lifted off the ground.

She can feel herself being carried bridal style, and her face is tucked against a warm body, although she keeps her eyes closed in terror. The wind rips around her and then slows to a crawl, but she still doesn't move.

Ten seconds go by, and tentatively she opens her eyes, finding herself staring at the blue cloth of a t-shirt. There's an arm under her thighs, keeping her balanced and steady, and she follows it up to a shoulder, then to a neck, then to worried, dark eyes.

"Setsuna," she breathes, infinitely thankful and bowing to whatever gods there may be for the girl's sudden appearance. It's as if somebody had heard her regrets and is giving her a chance to change her mind, and her eyes water as she comes down from her terror-induced high, emotions flooding back and suddenly infinitely grateful.

Setsuna does not, however, appear to be as happy. "Are you alright?" She asks, voice hard, a muscle in her jaw twitching.

Konoka is about to say she's fine, but thinks better of it. "No, I'm not alright," she says instead, words quavering. "What just happened?"

"You almost died." Her tone is matter-of-fact, but there's a rough edge to it, palpable anger lying just beneath the surface. It's clear that Setsuna has had enough drama for one day.

It's about to get a whole lot worse though, she knows.

Konoka can't think of anything to say to that, still confused beyond all belief. She can still feel the wind blowing her hair in her face, and she looks out at the scenery, only to be met by blue sky. They're moving strangely; there's no jostling as Setsuna runs, and she can't hear the thump of footsteps on pavement.

Perhaps it was her brain in denial, but it's only when Setsuna sets her down on top of a building that she notices the wings.

And then she _knows_ she must be asleep.

"I'm dreaming," she confirms, shoulders sagging with relief. She turns to Setsuna as if for conformation, but the girl levels her with a serious stare.

"You're not."

Konoka shakes her head stubbornly. "I am."

Setsuna sighs and her wings flutter as they fold against her back, although still visible. "You're not."

"You actually expect me to believe that a kid just mind-threw a signpost at me, and that you're flying around with _those_ on your back?"

"Yes," Setsuna responds bluntly.

Konoka's not having it though. "No, see, I'm pretty sure I would've noticed if you'd had wings by now. Look, just watch."

Wondering why she hadn't thought of it before, Konoka reaches a hand to her face, closes her eyes, and pinches her cheek.

It's a slight twinge, and then she opens her eyes.

The scenery is still the same.

"Okay," she laughs nervously. "Maybe I didn't do it hard enough."

"Konoka, please –"

Despite the tiredness in Setsuna's voice, Konoka repeats the action, but harder.

It hurts.

She opens her eyes.

Setsuna is still standing in front of her, just as winged.

"No," Konoka laughs, "See, that doesn't make any sense. I just – there's something wrong with me. Maybe I'm in a coma, or maybe you knocked me out in the hotel room, or – oh God, am I dead? Did you kill me?!"

A small part of Setsuna wishes she _had_, since it would at least spare her the pain of revealing her identity and ruining their relationship completely, if it hadn't been already. If Konoka hadn't wanted to be friends with a murderer, she'd hardly want to be friends with a _demonic _murderer.

But she hadn't done it. "No," she admits reluctantly, "I didn't."

"Then where the hell are we?!"

"It's an illusion. That boy created it, and you got stuck in it. I was close enough behind you that he caught me in it as well, although I doubt that was his intention."

"So this _is_ a dream."

"No," Setsuna clarifies tiredly. "It's an _illusion_. But it's very real."

"That makes no sense."

Konoka stares at her friend critically. Her intention had been to get very far away from the girl, but if it's a dream, then it doesn't matter, and if it's _not_ a dream, then she'd just saved her life. Again. Which only cements the fact that cutting Setsuna out of her life is a bad idea.

But now is hardly the time to deal with those thoughts any more than she already has, so instead she circles the other girl, stopping behind her, and reaches out to touch her wings. The feathers on the outside are smooth and soft, and she runs her fingers through them, feeling the downy ones beneath.

"It's like sticking your hand in a pillow," she muses, giggling either from the feeling, the absurdity, or hysteria. Probably all three.

Setsuna blushes at the contact. No one had ever touched her wings gently before, and she ruffles her feathers instinctively, causing Konoka to retract her hand with an "eep."

Konoka walks back around so they can be face-to-face. "Alright, so let's say you're telling the truth," she starts, tone still brimming with skepticism. "So what happens if I die here?"

Setsuna shrugs. "You die."

"In real life?"

This _is_ real life, but Setsuna figures it'll take more than words to convince the other girl. "Right."

"Okay," Konoka nods, tucking that fact away nonchalantly. "And if this is real, you saved my life again."

"Looks like it."

"By flying away with me."

"That's right."

"With your wings."

"Correct."

"You still can't answer a yes or no question." There is lucid humor shining in Konoka's eyes, and Setsuna struggles to maintain her seriousness.

She shrugs again. "Seems that way."

Konoka hums in thought. "Well, if you _are_ a figment of my mind, you're awfully accurate."

"Uh. Thanks?"

"You're welcome."

The two stare at each other, each waiting for the other to speak. Konoka breaks first.

"So, maybe-Setsuna, how do we get out of this situation?"

"We have to kill the boy."

"Right. Kill the twelve-year-old child. Who tried to murder me with a stop sign. Sounds reasonable."

"You know," Setsuna sighs, "You should really take this more seriously."

Konoka crosses her arms defiantly and raises an eyebrow. "Oh? And why's that?"

She doesn't receive a verbal answer, however, as Setsuna just points at something behind her. Konoka turns and hardly bats an eye at the figure of the boy floating in mid-air above the rooftop. He does not appear amused by their conversation, but Konoka is still (understandably) not ready to accept the fact that someone is levitating six stories above the ground in real life.

So she turns to him and throws her arms out. It is a dream, after all. "Go ahead!" She shouts, inviting him to attack. "When you kill me I'll wake up, and then I'll never watch another horror movie about creepy children ever again."

Setsuna bristles, hand on the hilt of her sword.

"_Konoka_," she hisses in warning, but the brunette just shrugs.

"I'm sorry, dream-Setsuna, but I don't believe you. If it makes you feel better, I'll apologize to the real you once I wake up."

She is still facing the boy, and she's surprised to feel Setsuna jerk her around. The swordsman's eyes are narrowed and serious, and her voice comes out in a growl. "You. Will. Not. Wake. Up."

"Yes, I will."

"Will you _listen_ to –"

Her sentence is cut short as the boy reaches a hand towards the building. The roof vibrates beneath them, and there's the sound of twisting metal again as he pulls a steel support beam out of the wall.

Then throws it at them.

All at once Setsuna is a flurry of motion, grabbing Konoka and jumping sideways off the building, wings spread wide to catch the wind. Another steel beam flies past them as she dodges mid-air, and then another, and they can hear the building crack and groan as its infrastructure is torn apart.

Konoka struggles in the grip. "Put me down already! How many times do I have to tell you; this _isn't_ real!"

"And how many times do I have to tell you that it _is_?" Setsuna counters, but with the girl struggling in her arms, she's forced to land again, dropping Konoka on another rooftop a lot less gracefully than the first time.

Konoka opens her mouth to speak, but Setsuna puts a hand on her shoulder, effectively cutting her off.

"_Listen_ to me," she says, voice urgent, trying desperately to get Konoka to understand. "If you die here, you _will_ die. I know it sounds crazy, but I _need_ you to believe me; please, just –"

"Please believe you?" Konoka asks incredulously, shaking the hand off her shoulder. "Where have I heard that line before?" She may not want to cut Setsuna out of her life forever anymore, but dream or not, she's not quite at the point of forgiving and forgetting. "Tell me, please, why I should believe _anything_ you say after all the things you've lied to me about."

Setsuna stand there at a loss for words. That boy could be anywhere right now, and her eyes dart around nervously even as she tries to formulate a response. He doesn't seem to be around though, and she takes the chance to meet Konoka's angry stare. The girl has no reason to trust her, Setsuna knows.

"Fine. Then don't"

That seems to disarm Konoka a little, and her gaze turns suspicious. "Fine?"

"That's right. I don't care if you believe me; I'm going to save your life either way, whether you want me to or not."

"And why would you do that? I already left."

"_Because_," Setsuna shouts, but pauses, words escaping her.

_Why_ does she want to save Konoka's life? _Why_ is she risking Evangeline's friendship, a pain-free future, the souls of millions of people? _Why_ is she here, in the middle of a battle, taking the time to address Konoka's feelings?

Setsuna has never been good with words when she's stopped to think about them, so she doesn't.

"It's _because_ you left. I was scared I'd never see you again; that I'd messed everything up – and even if I get to live the life I want by letting you die, I won't do it," she says, arms falling slack at her sides in resignation. "I can't."

Konoka bites her lip thoughtfully, trying not to let the words sway her. "You can't," she repeats. "Why? Because you need me to get around to foreign countries so you can kill people?"

Setsuna shakes her head vehemently. "No! That's not it!"

"Then _why_ can't you, Setsuna?!" Konoka shouts. "I'm tired of your non-answers."

But Setsuna doesn't have a better answer than that. She hangs her head in frustration, wishing for the words to fix this, but the voices in her head aren't her own.

There's Evangeline, _"Be careful on Earth…"_

And Mana, "_Not even close…"_

But funnily enough, it's Ayaka's that does it, _"How do you feel about Konoka…?"_

Setsuna may be slow when it comes to emotions, and she may not be very good at recognizing her own – she's realized that already, but now especially, because while those things are far from her specialty, Setsuna can certainly put two and two together.

It's painful and confusing, and she's scared of losing Konoka and regretting it for the rest of her life, and she's terrified of saying the wrong thing, but she finally knows how to answer Ayaka's question.

She looks up, determined not to screw up the best thing in her life.

"Konoka," she says, putting a heavy hand on the girl's arm with all the gravity she can muster. "I think I'm in love with you."

Konoka's face goes through several contortions, from surprised to dumbfounded to wary. "You… you _think _you love me?"

"Well – yeah," Setsuna verbally stumbles, disappointed by Konoka's reply. That wasn't really the response she'd been going for. "I mean, I'm not really sure how to tell, but I – I think so, yeah."

She wishes she could give a better answer, but she's _pretty_ sure she's in love, or has a crush, or _something._ She certainly has enough symptoms, according to the information she'd gathered from everyone and everything, herself and her screen time included.

Despite Setsuna's confession, Konoka stands there squinting at her in confusion, and Setsuna's confidence wavers. Aren't they supposed to have some kind of dramatic coming together now? That's how it happens in the movies, at least, where an admission of love is commonly followed by a kiss, or a return confession, or _something_.

But Konoka stands there, perfectly unconvinced no matter how good the words sound. "I don't believe you."

"Nunghh!" Setsuna replies, throwing her hands up and now at a complete loss. That was _supposed_ to be the trump card. "Fine!" She shouts, refusing to give up despite the set-backs. "I'll prove it to you then."

Konoka goes to respond, but stops abruptly, gaze caught on something behind Setsuna. The swordsman turns and comes face-to-face with the boy.

"Excuse me," he says politely, and then punches her in the gut so fast she can't even think to dodge.

She grunts, the air knocked out of her, but recovers quickly. The boy is no longer in front of her, however, and she turns to find him striding quickly towards Konoka. Setsuna draws her sword in one smooth motion and lunges at him. He merely waves a hand behind him and a steel beam bursts out of the rooftop, Setsuna's sword clanging off of it noisily. He doesn't even falter.

"I told you to stay still," he tells Konoka, voice steady. "Now this is going to hurt."

Setsuna sees Konoka take a step back in obvious fear, and she sidesteps the beam, feigning another lunge at the boy. Another steel beam appears to protect him, but he hadn't been her target – she scoops Konoka up and takes flight again, but not quick enough to dodge the massive pole of metal that comes flying after her.

She turns, keeping Konoka protectively in front of her, and it hits her square in the middle of the back, sending her spiraling through the air. With no small amount of effort, she flaps her right wing quickly to regain control, shooting up and spinning to avoid another strike.

The kid, whoever he is, is obviously strong. He hasn't exerted himself in the slightest, and Setsuna knows there's no way she can win this battle just by running away; but with Konoka incapable of fighting, she doesn't have much of a choice.

She resolutely reaches into her pocket and takes out her pactio card with Asuna, touching it to her forehead.

"What are you doing?" Konoka asks, voice shaking as she tries not to have a heart-attack at almost plummeting to the ground.

"Calling for help."

Konoka is clearly still confused, but Setsuna doesn't have time to explain.

_Asuna?_

_**Hey! **_Asuna's cheery voice responds. _**Did you talk to Konoka?**_

_Yes –_

_**How did it go?**_

_No time!_ Setsuna snaps, catching sight of the boy following them in her peripheral vision. _I need your help._

Her tone is urgent, and when Asuna replies, she's far more serious. _**What's wrong?**_

_I'm trapped in another illusion. There's a boy here trying to kill us – white hair, I think he's related to Rokuko and Karma. _

From her apartment, Asuna jerks up at the statement, but one word in particular catches her attention.

_**Us?**_

_Konoka is here with me._

_**Shit.**_

Setsuna can't agree more. _I can't kill him on my own; he's way stronger than me. Can you get here?_

_**What are your surroundings like?**_

_Looks like the city,_ Setsuna pauses to swoop down, trying to use the buildings for cover and nearly giving Konoka another heart attack at the sudden shift in altitude. _Maybe two miles from the hotel. It spans about three blocks._

_**He cast it over three blocks!?**_Asuna is already out the door, pactio card in her pocket, but pauses on her way to the area. That amount of magic is massive, far bigger than what Rokuko had conjured. Without any specific entry point like the entrance to the park, she won't be able to enter it as easily, if at all. Cursing again, she re-enters her apartment, needing the privacy, and pulls out another pactio card.

_**Listen, just stay away from him. I think I know who you're dealing with, and we're going to need help.**_

_From who?_

_**Just don't die,**_Asuna says quickly, unable to use both pactio cards at once and in a rush. _**I'll be there as soon as I can.**_

_Wait, Asuna!_ There's no reply, and Setsuna reluctantly puts the card back in her pocket.

Which is just enough of a distraction for her to get hit once more.

This time it's a sign post, and the spear grazes her shoulder. She falters in the air for a moment, only to get slammed by another metal beam in the back of the thighs. The force is enough to send her legs over her head in a backwards somersault, air whipping around her and catching Konoka's scream as they plummet again to the ground.

Thankfully, they hit the canvas awning of a roadside shop first, but the height of their fall still sends them crashing through it, the red-and-white-striped cloth falling around them. Setsuna adjusts herself to once again take the brunt of the impact, allowing Konoka's fall to be cushioned by her own body. Her head spins when they hit the ground, and she's vaguely aware that she probably has a concussion. Her vision is dark in places, and the weight of Konoka's body on top of hers is making it difficult to breathe.

When the darkness recedes to just her peripheral vision, she catches site of a metal pole – one of four that had been keeping the awning in place – hovering above them, ready to skewer them both.

Panicked, Setsuna hugs Konoka to her body and rolls, narrowly avoiding getting turned into human kabob.

She's on her feet quickly. The same pole is now angled to the side, ready again to impale them, and Setsuna grabs Konoka and jumps through one of the stores display windows.

They roll on the tiled floor, glass shard cutting them both, and when they stop Konoka finds herself staring at the ceiling. She sits up and catches sight of her legs, cut and bloodied, and when she goes to stand the pieces of glass imbedded in her lower body grind and sting painfully.

More painfully than her self-inflicted face pinching, and more painfully than any dream should allow.

A foot away from her, Setsuna groans slightly. The swordsman gets to her hands and knees, palms pressed against the broken glass and bleeding profusely.

"Believe me yet?" She asks, voice breathy and tired.

Konoka isn't sure what specifically she's asking about, and even then, she's not sure _what_ to believe at this point.

The crunching of glass alerts them both that they're not alone, and Setsuna quickly jumps to her feet, ignoring the way the world spins around her. The boy is standing outside the broken window watching them both, one hand shoved casually in his pocket, and Setsuna tries to blink away the triple-images of him.

"You can't beat me." His statement is matter-of-fact, not cocky, and Setsuna knows he's right.

She falters, head aching and unsure what to do.

"Do I at least get to know your name before you kill us?" She asks finally, fully-aware that she's probably going to die, but wanting to at least have that in formation to take with her.

Thankfully, he humors her. "Fate," he says simply, and goes to step inside the store.

Setsuna isn't about to let him.

"Stay here and don't move," she tells Konoka, who at this point doesn't think she'd be capable of much else anyway, and then Setsuna rushes forward.

She stumbles slightly on shaky legs, which turns out in her favor – she just narrowly avoids a punch to the face, and she takes the small lag of his recovery to boot-kick him in the stomach.

He makes no noise of pain, but he still goes down, hitting the pavement outside and sliding a few feet. Setsuna jumps out after him, determined to put as much space between him and Konoka as possible.

He stays on the ground, and Setsuna wonders briefly if she is, in fact, the luckiest person alive and she'd somehow managed to knock him out. The subtle motion of his fingers warns her otherwise, however, and she manages to jump upwards, wings flapping ferociously, as the very ground beneath her juts out in spikes.

Fate gets up calmly, heading towards Konoka, which effectively forces Setsuna to land. He makes another hand motion and the Earth shakes again, and she jumps sideways to avoid the hit.

Unfortunately, the spikes follow her, the ground jutting out in a linear path towards her as if a giant creature were underneath. Setsuna tries to dodge again, but a jagged piece of pavement catches her in the thigh, sending her tumbling again.

She scrambles to her feet, limping on her good leg. _I can't even get close to him_, which is bad news, considering her only specialty lies in close-range combat. Moreover, Fate won't allow any leniency; his no-nonsense demeanor means she won't even be able to distract him with mid-combat talk, and he hardly seems the type of villain to go on some time-consuming monologue.

Knowing she needs to change her strategy, she looks around for any inspiration. There's debris all around – chunks of concrete, broken glass, twisted metal – but the area is empty except for buildings and cars.

Struck by an idea, she goes to the nearest vehicle, shoving her fingers underneath the hood and trying to pry it open. It's locked in place and she pulls harder, hoping beyond hope that whatever freaky supernatural strength had graced her before would come back.

It does.

The hood pops open and she pries it back, ripping it off the car then sending it spinning like a Frisbee at Fate.

He watches it careening towards him and lifts a hand. The piece of car stops in front of him, levitating in the air for a moment before he sends it hurdling back at Setsuna.

_Damnit!_ She ducks, but he gives her no time to relax, sending the ground beneath her to attack again.

This time she places her foot firmly against the side of one spike and jumps up, flipping back and into the pile of broken rubble left behind from his previous attack. Whatever his powers are, controlling metal is obviously one of them, so she grabs a piece of concrete, hefting it up over her head, and throws it at him.

His apathetic expression changes for the first time as a twinge of annoyance passes across his face. Still, he's forced to move away from the storefront to dodge the massive make-shift weapon.

Seeing her success, Setsuna repeats the motion, bending down to grab chunks of road and throwing them at him like target practice. Each one must weigh at least fifty pounds, although she hardly feels it, and she's not about to start questioning how this is possible right now.

He avoids the strikes and counterattacks at the same time, sending more metal and ground her way, and she responds in kind, avoiding the worst of the damage and throwing more of the debris.

Predictably, he dodges everything she can throw, but Setsuna's intentions hadn't been to hit him.

There is a flash of red, and Setsuna finds herself grinning in relief. Fate does not look as happy.

"Asuna!" She shouts, grateful for her friend's timely appearance, but then she falters at the sight of another person.

The redhead runs to reach her, stopping a few yards away with Fate between them. Her companion follows as well, turning to Setsuna with a polite bow.

"Setsuna. It's good to see you again."

Setsuna looks back and forth between them. "You brought Negi?"

"I couldn't get here without his magic," Asuna explains, but quickly shifts gears to more important matters. "Where's Konoka?"

The swordsman shoves a thumb in the direction of the store where Konoka is sitting on the ground, looking absolutely bewildered by this turn of events.

Asuna sighs. "I guess we'll have some explaining to do."

"Later," Setsuna agrees, focusing her attention back on Fate.

There is a brief pause, tension thick in the air. Negi and Asuna make eye-contact, silent communication passing between them, and then she charges Fate, her massive sword in hand.

He extends his arm and motions towards a building, a steel beam flying out and heading straight for Asuna. Setsuna tenses, getting ready to spring forward, but her ripped hamstring protests and she can only watch.

But Asuna stops suddenly, letting the beam fly past her just inches from her torso in its linear trajectory. Light explodes from behind her as twelve magic arrows erupt from Negi's outstretched palm.

Fate's eyes narrow surreptitiously. He stomps his foot on the ground and a wall of dirt appears in front of him, taking the damage in his place. It crumbles from the attack, and when they can clearly see his face again, he's obviously annoyed.

He turns his gaze to Konoka, who freezes at the stare, and he announces quite calmly: "I don't have time for this."

Everybody tenses as Fate gestures towards one of the parked cars along the side of the road, and with a metallic groan, it lifts off the ground.

"Shit, Negi –" Asuna shouts, the distance between her and Fate too far to make, but Negi is already chanting a spell under his breath.

Not quick enough, however.

With nothing but a flick of his fingers, the car is hurdled towards the store, Konoka its obvious target. The brunette can do nothing against the threat of a two ton vehicle thrown at her with tremendous speed; the air freezes in her lungs, her whole body tensing in anticipation for her death.

Setsuna watches, a million thoughts flying through her brain at once – _how can I stop it? My sword can't cut through that, my body won't even slow it down _– she looks at Konoka frozen in fear and her own heart jerks, words bouncing around in her brain; Mana's, Evangeline's, Ayaka's, Asuna's – _she's going to die. She's going to die she's going to die she's going to –_

Her body moves, thoughts lost to the wind rushing by her ears as she puts herself between Konoka and the oncoming car, her feet braced against the ground, arms outstretched and palms open.

She has no idea what she's doing, but she knows she has to do it.

The underside of the car hits her outstretched palms and she pushes back with every ounce of strength in her body, her feet sliding on the broken glass and her muscles straining, her face contorted with effort.

The force sends her halfway through the store, and all four onlookers stare in unadulterated disbelief as she and the car finally stop just a foot in front of Konoka.

Silence.

Setsuna stands there, balancing the tons of metal in her arms, her biceps and shoulders quaking under the weight, but as Fate meets her gaze – and even his eyes are wide with surprise – it's not only the feat of strength that has him worried, it's her expression as well.

Her eyes are narrowed, brows drawn together in obvious rage, and her teeth are grit and her pulse so quick with adrenaline he can see it in her neck. A growl builds in her throat.

"I'm," she adjusts her hands on the cars undercarriage, "Going," she hefts it up over her head, "_To kill you!_"

The last word rips its way out of her throat as she hurls the car at him.

He lifts a palm hurriedly, trying to get the metal vehicle under his control again, but Setsuna's fury-induced strength sends it speeding so quickly he doesn't have time.

Konoka's vision is, thankfully for her, blocked by Setsuna's body. The other three watch as the car rams into Fate, his limbs contorting unnaturally and the life going out of his eyes almost instantly. It doesn't stop there, however, and his body winds up pinned between the car and a huge concrete building.

They watch the wreckage, waiting for him to move. He doesn't.

More silence, except for Setsuna's ragged breathing.

Negi and Asuna stare.

Setsuna turns, blood still dripping down her leg, and her knees are shaking as she comes down from an adrenaline rush. She's seeing triples of Konoka now too, but she doesn't care.

She tries to speak. The noise comes out raspy, so she clears her throat and tries again, leveling Konoka with a stare.

"Now do you believe me?"

Konoka licks her lips, opens her mouth, hesitates. She can hardly say no, and is, quite frankly, scared to at this point.

"Yes," she says.

The thump of Setsuna's body hitting the floor is her only reply.

**XXX**

* * *

**A/N: **So, are all my chapters going to end with someone dying? Possibly, haha.

Mana's memory is supposed to be around the early 1800s, but probably isn't very historically accurate to any particular war. Just bear with me on that one; I'm by no means a history buff, although I did do a tiny bit of research into Portugal's war history and when the hand grenade was invented. Also, was her boyfriend/friend/whatever ever named in the manga? I didn't think so, so I just gave him a name that hopefully works for this purpose.

Anyway, let me know what you all think! There were a lot of developments in this chapter – many of which won't get thoroughly explained until next chapter or the one after (like, for example, why Setsuna can throw cars at people).

See you guys soon (hopefully)!


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